Monona Community Festival

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Jimmy Benavides/courtesy Monona Festival

Fireworks at a past Monona Community Festival.

Fireworks at a past Monona Community Festival.

From beginnings as Monona Fun Days in the 1960s, the Monona Community Festival has grown into one of Dane County’s best Fourth of July events, featuring a spectacular fireworks display, a big art fair, bands and a hopping beer tent, kids' activities, and the unique spectacle of the Wisconsin Wife Carry Championship. The fest has always been free admission, and entirely volunteer run as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit raising funds for community organizations; unfortunately, a decline in volunteers and a rise in costs to put on the festival have led the organization to announce that 2024 will be the final year. Set aside some time to make some new memories to join those of fun times during past years. Find the full schedule below and updates at mononafestival.com (note, the carnival opens on July 2).

7/3-4, Winnequah Park, with carnival (opens 7/2), kids’ activities, food carts, music, fireworks 9:20 pm, 7/4.

Carnival hours: July 2, 2 PM – 7 PM (all you can ride wristbands 4 PM – 7 PM); July 3,  2 PM – 8 PM (all you can ride wristbands 4 PM – 8 PM)l July 4, 11 AM – 8 PM

July 3:

11 AM – Midnight Molson Coors Beer & Wine Tent MORE INFO

11 AM – 6 PM Tasting Room Wine/Cigar Tasting More Info

11 AM – 10 PM Pappa’s BBQ Concession Tent More Info

11 AM – 10 PM Food Carts in the Park More Info

3 PM – Empty Happy Hour 2 for 1 Draft Beer “Kill the Keg”

3 PM – 7 PM Cornhole Tournament More Info

3 PM – 8 PM $5000 Hole in One Contest More Info

3:30 PM – 5:30 PM Smarter Than You Trivia More Info

6 PM – 8:30 PM TJ Stone

9 PM – Midnight Grannyshot

July 4:

9 AM – 4 PM Art Fair in the Park More Info

11 AM – Midnight Molson Coors Beer & Wine Tent MORE INFO

11 AM – 6 PM Tasting Room Wine/Cigar Tasting More Info

11 AM – 10 PM Pappa’s BBQ Concession Tent More Info

11 AM – 10 PM Food Carts in the Park More Info

11 AM – 8 PM $5000 Hole in One Contest More Info

11 AM – 1 PM Drag Bingo Presented by Montucky Cold Snacks

11:30 AM Kids Bike Parade Start at Corner of Nichols Rd & Winnequah

11:45 AM – 1 PM Kids’ Water Fights & Fire Truck Display, Monona Volunteer Fire Department, Nichols Rd. in front of Community Pool

Noon – 2 PM Classic Car Show More Info

Noon – 3 PM Face Painting by Premier Face Painting, Dream Park Shelter

9 AM – 4 PM Balloon Animals by Twist N Shout Balloon Twisting, Dream Park Shelter

1 PM – 3 PM Progressive Lane All-Stars

2 PM – 4 PM David Landau Children’s Musician Sing-A-Long, Dream Park Shelter

3:30 PM – 5:30 PM Son Del Atlantico More Info

4 PM – 5:30 PM James the Magician, Dream Park Shelter

6 PM Wisconsin Wife Carry Championship MORE INFO

6 PM – 8 PM The Rotation MORE INFO

8:30 PM – Midnight The Civil Engineers MORE INFO

9:20 PM FIREWORKS SHOW MORE INFO

media release:

The Monona Community Festival, the annual fourth of July event in the heart of Monona, will end after 2024. A combination of fewer core volunteers, increased costs, and new regulation has put the event on an unsustainable path.

“It is with a heavy heart that we announce that this year’s event will be our last,” said Monona Community Festival President Eric Redding. “Unfortunately, in the last few years we have seen our core volunteers that organize the event go from a group of over twenty down to fewer than seven. The smaller group of volunteers has done an amazing job to keep the event going so far, but we are simply unable to do so moving forward.”

The Monona Community Festival is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, entirely volunteer run organization. The event has its origins in the mid-'60s-'70s as the “Monona Fun Days”, which eventually became the current festival in the mid-'80s. Today, the event routinely draws 20,000 – 30,000 people to Winnequah Park and boasts one of the best fireworks shows in the Madison area on July 4th. The proceeds of the festival are used to help support other location organizations such as the Boy Scouts, volunteer fire fighter association, youth sports teams, and Badger Honor Flight.

In addition to fewer volunteers, the cost of running the festival, from the price of beer and bands to equipment and trash pickup, has steadily risen over the last several years. Festival organizers have worked hard to limit the cost increases from reaching the public to keep the event open to families of all means. The festival also received unexpected news only a few weeks ago that the city of Monona would be requiring a substantial fee in 2024 for police, fire/EMS, and public works staff time. That amount is set to dramatically increase the following year with new park fees. In addition to the new costs, the city is proposing new forms, fees, and processes to even hold the event.

While there are options to help mitigate the increased costs with additional sponsorships and other funds, those efforts add a significant amount of work to an already heavy workload. This year’s festival alone will feature over 100 food and art vendors, a dozen sponsors, more than 20 activities over two days, and the fireworks show that draws tens of thousands of people to Winnequah Park. Each of those items requires dozens of hours to plan and coordinate.

“We sympathize with the dire financial situation the city of Monona finds itself in, but our volunteer organization is already struggling to fund and plan our event,” continued Redding. “Instead of taking actions like cutting beloved kid’s activities or having a cover charge to get into the music tent that will lead to the slow death of the festival, we have decided to end on high note.”

The final two-day event kicks off on July 3rd with live music, a happy hour, carnival rides, team trivia, a wine & cigar pairing, and a corn hole competition. July 4th will see the return of the art fair, Wife Carrying Championship, even more live music, a classic car show, drag bingo, and plenty of fun for the family. Throughout the whole event, great food will be available from local food carts, classic carnival snacks will be fried, and cold beer and wine will be flowing.

As always, the event culminates in a fireworks display the evening of July 4th at 9:20 p.m. in Winnequah Park. The launch zone is at the softball diamonds between the Monona Pool and Winnequah School. Seating is available in the surrounding park on a first-come, first-served basis. A blanket or lawn chairs

are recommended.

“The festival organizers want to thank all our sponsors, volunteers, and members of the public who have supported the event for decades. While we are sad to say goodbye, we hope that a group of community members can potentially revive the event in the future,” concluded Redding. “Until then, we can think of no better way to end the festival than with a bang!”

For the most up to date news on the Monona Festival, follow the event on Facebook, Instagram, and online at www.mononafestival.com.