The 39th Annual Silver Lake Days Festival will be held June 19 and 20, and organizers have put together quite an event, complete with a parade, car show, live entertainment, and much more.

Of course, there will be a parade. This year’s theme for the parade is “Candyland.” Lineup for the parade begins at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, June 20 on SR 14. It starts at 11 a.m. Cutie King and Queen judging will immediately follow.

The entertainment lined up for Friday night is top notch: Kim Robins and 40 Years Late. “We’re a bluegrass band,” says Robins, who was born in Bloomington. “I grew up opening for Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty.”

The name of Robins’ band is taken from her unusual career trajectory. Not even in her 20s, Robins put music on the back burner to raise her daughter. “I started at the age of 5, and I started singing again at 45,” she says.

“We’ve been going full force,” she says, having released her self-titled debut album in 2013. “We’re opening for Ralph Stanley in August.”

“We’re really looking forward to this festival,” she says. Additionally, Renegade, regulars at The Silver Inn in Silver Lake, will perform on Saturday night. The Manchester Civic Band will perform on Saturday morning, and karaoke with Chris Cage will be going on downtown Saturday afternoon.

A few sporting events will be going on throughout the festival. Silver Lake Youth League t-ball and coaches pitch baseball double elimination tournament will be going on at the school field from June 15 through 19. All games start at 6 p.m. A corn hole tourney will be held on Saturday.

The Fireman’s Water Ball Tourney returns this year. That will be held after the parade, and the tournament is is double elimination. Afterwards is the bed race. A minimum of six beds are needed to have the event, and there’s a $200 first prize – so be sure to sign up.

The “Echoes of the Past” tractor and equipment display will be open during the afternoons on Friday and Saturday. All types of tractors and farming equipment will be shown.

Animal-Grams will be on High Street on Friday evening with a petting zoo, offering pony rides and hosting mini pig races. An ice cream social and hog roast will occur. The Lions will host bingo on Saturday night.

And of course, vendors, games, concessions and other attractions will be setup downtown. See a detailed schedule below, and call the Silver Lake town office, (260) 352-2120, for additional information. Registration forms may be found at www.townofsilverlake.com.

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