Weekend events abound as West Tenn. says goodbye to summer

HENDERSON, Tenn. — This weekend is full of events as West Tennessee says goodbye to summer.

“We call it our family picnic,” said Emily Johnson, executive director of the Henderson Chamber of Commerce. “It’s just a great gathering of friends and families to come down and enjoy the time together.”

The 39th annual Chester County BBQ Festival is underway in downtown Henderson, offering free events for the community.

“It’s barbecue, it’s a fundraiser for the chamber. We have kids’ activities, we have street vendors, talent shows, all that fun stuff,” Johnson said.

Saturday, the festival will have a few special guests.

“Tomorrow, Cinderella, Belle and the Minions will be here and you can have free pictures downtown with them.”

But the big draw is always the food.

“We fix 2,619 pounds of BBQ, which is about 13,000 sandwiches, 600 pounds of chickens and 500 pounds of ribs, and it’s going to be the best you ever ate,” Johnson said.

It’s something that wouldn’t be possible without the help of volunteers.

“We could not do this without our volunteers,” volunteer coordinator Tiffany Jones said. “Our lines get extremely long during our dinner crowd and our lunch crowd.”

While some are enjoying some good, old-fashioned cooking, others are going back to the good old days here at the Chickasaw State Park.

“Frontier Days is basically a celebration about how things used to be,” Park Ranger Scott Easley said.

From horse-drawn wagons to a parade, it’s a weekend you don’t want to miss.

“We just like to bring friends and family out to the park to enjoy nature, to do things outside with your kids instead of being inside holed up in front of a TV playing video games,” camp host Sonya Morrissett said.