DEWAYNE'S CORNER - Peanut Festival has history and future in Marlow

Marlow Chamber of Commerce was active in the '90 with festival's every year. When I was on the board the one for 1996 was the Lavitsef Festival. I believe Les Dawson come up with Festival spelled backwards and the Chamber adapted it as name for festival. Lavitsef was continued for a few years. In late 1996, its name was changed again to Outlaw Days/Annual Ambush, and on September 21, and it was moved to Red Bud Park.

While I was at Marlow Lumber, I got to smell the peanuts in the dryers. Sometimes they would spill some out of trailers and we would take scoop and scoop up to take home. And do you remember the red dust settling on everything? Also, heard about the RATs that were in the warehouse where they stored the peanuts!! Think about those RATs every time I have a peanut butter sandwich. Ha, ha! My Grandpa Luther Boyles raised peanuts.

Back to the Peanut Festival. We had a parade down Main Street and had a Farm Family of the Year. I was a director on the Chamber Board and I drove my wife's Mustang convertible with the Farm Family of The Year, Wanda and George Nease, down Main Street as Grand Marshalls. Chamber presented each with a jacket recognizing them as Farm Family of The Year.

Other things going on were a hometown carnival with merchants setting up booths along Second Street.

There was a Farm Hand Olympics, and a guess how many peanuts in a jar contest, along with different organizations that set up games for the kids to play. That evening was the street dance with a live local band.

GOOD NEWS! May not be a Peanut festival but a welcome return. On its internet page, Marlowchamber.org, Chamber Calendar shows this year a Fall Festival for Saturday October 28, in Red Bud Park. Watch the Chamber's web page for details to be announced. Looking forward to see the Festival's come back to my home town. Best little town around.