Heritage Day

The National Cherry Festival will celebrate the Heritage of the Region with a Native American Pow Wow Dance, a colorful display of dance and drumming music. Tuesday, July 10, is the Festival’s Heritage Day presented by Grand Traverse Resort & Casino.

A tradition at the National Cherry Festival is the 12:00 p.m. Pow Wow Dance presented by the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians. The colorful display of dance includes native dress and music from days gone by. Heritage Day activities at the Festival Open Space offer visitors an opportunity to explore exhibits featuring hand made crafts from the region’s Native American communities. In addition to crafts and artists, many elements of our local and regional history will be highlighted through reenactments presented by area historical organizations like the Mattis and Maritime Heritage Alliance.

Highlighting the roster of Heritage Day activities is an Old Fashioned Family Picnic at The Park, presented in cooperation, with the Grand Traverse Heritage Alliance and the Grand Traverse Heritage Center. The picnic event will be held along the banks of the Boardman River on Sixth Street, near Union Street at Hannah Park. The Old Fashioned Family Picnic at The Park will feature family games like potato sack races, tug-of-war, wheelbarrow races, and of course the not to be missed ‘cherries on a spoon’ race. Picnic lunch will be served in the Park from 11:30 to 2:30 p.m. The cost is just $3.00 for adults and $1.00 for kids 12 and under. A portion of the proceeds will go to the Grand Traverse Heritage Center.  

New to the Old Fashioned Family Picnic is the Cherry Pie Bake-Off. Amateur pie bakers are invited to compete in the first edition of the Cherry Pie Bake-Off by delivering their baked cherry pie to the panel of judges at 1 p.m. at Hannah Park during the Heritage Day Picnic. Red ribbon cherry pie bake-off winners will be announced that day. A field of 10 pies will be selected for judging. 

Deadline for entry is June 15, 2012.