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WHEELING – The community joined Wheeling Park Thursday evening to ring in 100 years with its Grand Picnic in the Park, a kickoff to a weekend full of festivities to celebrate the park's centennial.
Complete with "whimsical stilt walkers" dressed as trees, a spread of curated food and drink options and performances from several musical acts, the joyful celebration brought several hundred Wheeling citizens of all ages together -- dressed in their finest - to appreciate the park and its 100 years of rich history.
"This is a great start to our weekend and the whole weekend will be great for people to come out and visit," Park Manager Nat Goudy said.
Goudy emphasized the unique menu offered at Thursday's event, which pulled from several various cuisines served in an "elevated picnic" atmosphere, complete with music from Chuck Lucas and No Bad JuJu.
"We're kicking off our 100-year anniversary with a grand picnic. We got the tables lined up, we have an awesome menu that our culinary team from Wheeling Park put together led by Chef Travis from brisket to huli-huli chicken and a low country boil and it's just a big community picnic to say 'hey, thanks for helping us celebrate 100 years,'" he said.
The event was the first of many coming this weekend, all centered around celebrating the park that has been a pillar of Wheeling's community and culture.
On Friday, the park will hold one of its weekly Fun Fest Friday concerts at which band MSM will open and Eli and the Mojo Kings will continue the show into the evening. There will also be a beer garden and concessions available.
Saturday will welcome crowds of athletes competing for the crown for the King and Queen of the Hill Fun Run, a race around Wheeling Park's rolling hills. Following the race, the park will officially open the newly built -- and highly anticipated -- splash pad. Attendees can enjoy the pool and splash pad for free.
There will also be live music scattered throughout the weekend at the park, from Friday night's festivities to Cassie and Dave, Punching Oswald and the Steeltown Band throughout Saturday afternoon, wrapping up with a Billy Joel and Elton John tribute band. Sunday, On the Rocks and The Fantasies will play at the park from 12 to 4:30 p.m.
The weekend will also include a foam party, family fun zone and a vintage car show. More details can be found on the Wheeling Park website.
Goudy said he was thrilled to see the community gather on Thursday evening for the picnic celebration, and is looking forward to the packed weekend of fun ahead on the historic park's grounds. He noted the special place that the park holds for many Wheeling residents and others in the area.
"The parks are awesome, the community. Think about 100 years -- I've been here for 38 of them," he said. "So it's just amazing, it's awesome. We all have our own little stories about the park and how we grew up here, worked our first jobs and really they're just a big part of our community."