A message from the Kasson Festival  in the Park Chair

Veteran’s Memorial Park in Kasson will be buzzing with activities from Aug. 7-9. The 37th Annual Kasson Festival in the Park will be a host to food and craft vendors, a variety of kids’ activities, runners of all ages, music throughout the park, and so much more for families to enjoy. The Festival in the Park committee has worked tirelessly all year to ensure the Kasson community is able to celebrate another year of the Festival.
With the crazy weather from the 2025 Festival in the Park, this year’s Festival will host some of the activities that were canceled because of the rain last year. After not being available on Saturday last year, Hyper Space Laser Tag, Kloen Inflatables, the car and tractor shows, Treasure Hunt, and Pedal Pull will all be back this year. We are excited to see what the weather brings, but hopefully there won’t be any canceling again this year!
The 2026 Festival in the Park week begins on Monday, Aug. 3, with the start of the Medallion Hunt within Kasson City Limits. One clue each day will be shared with the Kasson businesses who have donated and sponsored the Festival this year. A list of businesses will be provided on the Festival in the Park’s Facebook page, so please be sure to visit them, get the clue, and support our town! The hunt will continue throughout the week until the Medallion has been found. Happy Hunting!
The official festivities in the park will start on Friday, August 7th, at 5 p.m., with food vendors opening to the public. The rest of the festivities will begin at 5:30 p.m. and finish after the 9 p.m. movie in the park, “Heaven is For Real.” Saturday’s activities begin at 7:30 a.m. with the sign up for the 5K Run in the park and goat yoga at 8 a.m. at Elmore Family Chiropractic. There is a full day of activities scheduled, including some of the old favorites: sidewalk chalk contest, West Central Entertainment DJ, corn hole tournament, ball drop, pedal pull, bingo, and eating contests for both adults and kids. We can’t forget about a crowd favorite, the belly flop contest, starting at 5 p.m., and the Kasson Ambassador and Junior Ambassador Ceremony starting at 6 p.m. To close out the night, Brad Boice & The Big Wave will be back for the second year in a row, with a concert starting at 7 p.m. and the fireworks starting at 9:30 p.m. Once done in the park, you also have the chance to head to the fire hall to enjoy the fireman’s dance with Branded Hot Country performing.
Sunday’s activities start at 9 a.m. with an Ecumenical Church Service sponsored by South Zumbro Lutheran Church and St. John’s Lutheran Church. The service will be in the West Pavilion in the park and happens rain or shine. Bring your own chairs to enjoy wonderful music and a message, enjoy a treat after, and then bring your chairs to the parade route to save your spot. Parade line-up starts at 11:30 a.m., and then the Kiddie Parade will be at 12:45 p.m. with the Grand Parade shortly following with a start of 1:30 p.m. Following the completion of the parade, please join Miss Minnesota, Anna Brennan, in the pavilion for a meet and greet, and then head to the fire hall to enjoy some food and family entertainment.
Along with our old favorites, there are some fun new favorites added to the Festival in the Park schedule this year. On Friday evening at 5:30 p.m., there will be a kids dance by the stage on 7th Street with lots of fun activities. All ages are welcome, and the music will make you want to dance! On Saturday, the Kratos Strength Classic will be happening in the park from 10 a.m. — 2 p.m. There will be a wide variety of strength activities for each competitor to do, so come for the whole time or just watch for a little while. At 11:30 a.m. — 1:30 p.m. you can join the live broadcast from 97.5 FM as they promote their summer contest and broadcast live from the park. They will have lots of fun items and activities for families to join in!
Sunday’s grand parade will feature over 60 units, both from within the community and from surrounding communities. Some of your favorites, from the KM athletic teams to the Shriner motorcycles, along with new units, including big trucks and community businesses, are all scheduled to parade through town. During the parade, we will celebrate our Grand Marshal, Tanya Young, who has been a staple in our community for many years. You may know her from Ready Set Learn, the Salvation Army, or the many activities she does at St. John’s Lutheran Church. Her influence and passion in the Kasson community makes her a special person and certainly deserving of the Grand Marshal title. We are proud to have her within the community and highlighting her in such a fun way.
We hope you can make it to the 37th Annual Festival in the Park Aug. 7-9. We look forward to celebrating our community in such a fun and special way, highlighting the people and businesses that help make our community better. A huge thank you to the many people who make the festival possible, from each and every committee member who has attended meetings and volunteered many hours to the weekend, to all the sponsors who have donated and sponsored events. Without these people and so many more, our Festival in the Park weekend would not be possible.
For more information, please visit our website: kassonfestivalinthepark.com or our Facebook page, Kasson Festival in the Park. For weather-related items and announcements the week of the festival, please watch our Facebook.