Welcome to the 70th Annual

PERSIMMON FESTIVAL

Mitchell, Indiana

 September 17th to 24th, 2016

Main Street activities are September 19– 24, 2016

The theme for 2016:

“HEALING HANDS, HELPING HEARTS”

On behalf of the Greater Mitchell Chamber of Commerce, it is my sincere pleasure to welcome you to the 70th annual Persimmon Festival.  Only a festival operated by dedicated volunteers who share a love of Mitchell could pull off an event of this magnitude for seven solid decades.

I invite you to take a little extra time to enjoy Mitchell’s historic downtown, which is filled with antique shops, unique businesses, along with the grand opening of the famous Mitchell Opera House.  You are also encouraged to visit many of the local businesses that continuously support the festival and the community.  You will see several of them as sponsors in this book.

The theme for this year is “Healing Hands, Helping Hearts”.  I chose this theme to honor the men and women in the medical community.  It’s important to me to honor dedicated professionals who’ve spent their lives making the people of Mitchell healthy.

This week, in honor of the 70th anniversary of the festival, we’ve increased the entertainment options downtown, bringing in musical artist who are sure to please everyone.

And, most importantly, the Traveling Vietnam Wall will visit Mitchell for the first time ever. It will be stationed at City Hall,  407 S. Sixth Street, beginning September 22, 2016.  We hope you’ll take the time to visit this replica of the Vietnam Wall in Washington, D.C., and take time to reflect on the men and women who have given the ultimate sacrifice in service to our great country.

The folks of Mitchell welcome you to their hometown, which was established in 1853.  We take great pride in hosting the Persimmon Festival and hope you enjoy your visit!

Henry Shetler

General Chairman of the 70th Annual Persimmon Festival