LE GRAND — Residents of Le Grand will have something special to celebrate this fall as the formerly long-running Pioneer Days town festival, which has been dormant since 2019, is returning to the community.

The Le Grand Parks and Rec Committee, comprised of a group of young parents in town, is behind the revival, and committee member Luke Wilson said there was a strong desire among residents to bring Pioneer Days back.

“There was always kind of that hope,” he said. “The Park and Rec Board previous to all of us joining had kind of tried to make that effort, and there just wasn’t an appetite for the volunteer base to do it then.”

The new group, however, has been steadily building momentum since getting involved, leading a well-attended park opening event last October that led them to believe the festival could succeed. Through partnerships with local businesses and the ability to attract entertainers at reasonable rates, they were able to make it a reality.

Pioneer Days will be held on Saturday, Oct. 10 around the city park and community center area, kicking off with a 5k race at 7:45 a.m. (starting at the high school football field) and a pancake breakfast to follow, a parade at 11 a.m., food trucks, inflatables, a pickleball tournament, a vendor and craft show and a series of events at the amphitheater between noon and 7 p.m. — a Marshall County K9 demonstration, Meskwaki Settlement School dancers, falconer Brenda Smith and music from Robert Maharry and Le Grand’s own Trevor Parrish.

Other events include monster arm wrestling, a dunk tank, bags tournament, face painting and the Blank Park Zoo. The Funky Pepperoni, Clare’s Tenderloins by Mya, Dave’s Mini Donuts, Maria’s Tacos, Sno 2 Go and Most Wanted Coffee will all be on site as well.

Wilson also laid out some goals for future iterations of the festival such as a headlining musical act in the evening slot and a fireworks show. He noted that the old Pioneer Days Festival was held in August, and this one will be in October. If turnout suffers as a result, he said, he would be willing to explore moving it back to late summer.

The committee is looking for more volunteers and donors. If interested, contact legrandparksandrec@gmail.com.