“Volksfest,” originating in 1838, is a cultural festival traditionally hosted in Germany each year for one to three weeks. The event often provides various German foods, dances, music and beer. In Tuscaloosa’s second-ever Volksfest, executive director of FOCUS on Senior Citizens, Morgan Mann, hopes to offer just that.
“The German population really does have a cultural influence in this community and prior to this event I didn’t think there was much showcasing that,” Mann said. “So I reached out to our German community through businesses like Mercedes Benz and Edelweiss, and I got them to help plan the festival because they know what we’re trying to recreate here.”
This year’s Volksfest will feature two German polka acts, a Biergarten tent showcasing local German brews from Black Warrior Brewing Company and Druid City and a surplus of authentic German cuisine.
“We’ll be bringing things like pretzels, German cookies, cakes and bratwurst for the festival,” said Ester Scheeff, the general manager of Edelweiss, Tuscaloosa’s German bakery and coffee shop. “Everyone comes together and it all really turns out like a real German Volksfest.”
The event will take place from 12 p.m. until 6 p.m. at Government Plaza, and will also offer food trucks and children’s activities. Returning this year is Wolfgang Moritz who will perform traditional favorites and the Tuscaloosa Barnyard petting zoo. The event is family friendly, but also encourages UA students to attend.
“I’m 45 years old but I can remember being a UA student like it was yesterday,” Mann said. “If the weather is warm, and you have live music, something to eat and a good beer, well, that would’ve been right up my alley.”
With close to 1000 attendees last year, Mann hopes to recreate the festival’s traditionalism and success with even more guests this year.
“Even though we want as many people as possible to attend, as long as we see a good crowd of people having fun, we’ve achieved our goal.” Mann said.
Tickets can be purchased at http://focusonseniorcitizens.org/ for $15. For $50, VIP tickets may also be purchased that include a t-shirt, glass Volksfest beer mug and three beer tokens. Proceeds will benefit FOCUS on Senior Citizens of Tuscaloosa County, which provides Tuscaloosa citizens 50 and over with services and activities like nutrition centers and a volunteer program.
“It’s nice to know you can go and have fun at a traditional German festival while also benefiting the senior residents of Tuscaloosa,” said Will Sherrer, a sophomore majoring in operations management. “There really is a significant German community in Tuscaloosa, and I think it’s great everyone in town will have the opportunity to experience a traditional festival while learning more about German culture.”
