Don’t miss the IL Fall Festival on Saturday

It’s almost show time for the seventh annual Indian Land Fall into Fun Festival and third annual S.C. Championship Chili Cookoff.
Saturday’s festival promises to be a lot of fun for everyone from toddlers to teens and older folks, all for a good cause.
“This is the biggest fundraiser for the Indian Land Rotary Club, and what we do with the funds is give back, mostly to the local Indian Land community,” Indian Land Rotary Club President Dr. Adam Cooper said.
He’s hoping the festival will draw more than 12,000 visitors and bring in about $16,000 to $17,000 to help fund the club’s Indian Land Elementary School dictionary project, literacy projects and support local youth sports teams and more.
This year’s event will open in a new venue at the beautiful City of Light campus, 3000 WorldReach Drive, off Charlotte Highway (U.S. 521), kicking off with a 5K run/walk at 7:30 a.m.
If that’s too early for you, the rest of the festival opens at 10 a.m. and runs through 2 p.m.
Come early, though, if you want to get a taste of the chili made by cooks from all over the South. Once the cookoff entries are turned in, the rest of the chili goes fast, with fans scarfing down samples of both Texas-style  (meat and gravy only) and freestyle (with beans and other ingredients) as quick as they can to choose the people’s favorite. The chili is generally gone by noon, but there will be plenty of other food available from vendors, including a Rotary barbecue plate.
Saturday’s festival will feature live entertainment from the Ryan Bach Band, Leslie Carpenter and Reyan Belcher.
There will be plenty of activities for children, too, with  games, inflatables, pony rides, face painting, miniature golf and a rock-climbing wall. They can also meet Sir Purr, the Carolina Panthers’ mascot, as well as Charlotte Knights mascot Homer the Dragon.
And don’t miss the car show, organized by the Dixieland Cruisers this year.
Shoppers will want to visit the business and arts fair, where about 100 participants will be ready to share their info and wares with you.
And stop by the silent auction, where you can bid on a jersey signed by Minnesota Vikings Pro Bowl running back Adrian Peterson, Carolina Panthers and Charlotte Knights tickets, deals on local services and more.
Organized by the Indian Land Rotary Club, the festival promises to be a lot of fun for everyone.
So make plans now to come out Saturday to the City of Light to run, play, eat, listen to music, visit the business and arts fairs, bid on some great stuff at the silent auction, admire the car show entries and just have a good time with your families, friends and neighbors.   
We’ll see you Saturday.