March 7, 2023- The City of Decatur announced it will be hosting the Centennial Lake Fest, which will include the opening of the Staley Basin to celebrate 100 years of Lake Decatur.
With July marking 100 years of Lake Decatur, the event is scheduled to be held over the course of two days, July 8th and 9th.
The event is a collaboration between the City of Decatur, the Decatur Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Decatur Park District, and the Staley Family Foundation.
Leading up to the event, the community of Decatur will reflect on the history of Lake Decatur and the memories made during the existence of the lake.
“Over the next few months leading up to the festival, you will be hearing some amazing stories people will be sharing,” Teri Hammel, executive director at the Decatur Area Convention & Visitors Bureau said. “For that, you will possibly be able to connect with some of those stories and maybe they will trigger some of those memories that made your heart beat, made you feel really great, or things from your family that you can share.”
The lake was constructed as a source of water for Decatur by corn refiner A.E. Staley, and 100 years later the Staley Family Foundation will play a key role in creating new memories for families in regards to Lake Decatur.
“It just makes sense that the first 100 years was kicked off by A.E. Staley and his wonderful vision, and the next 100 years is able to be kicked off by his descendants in celebration of the amazing town that this is and their love for this community,” Stephanie Endsley, event organizer said.
The festival will take place in the Marina and along the Lake Front.
The event will include an arts festival section, family fun activities, food vendors, live music, sail boat presentations, a boat parade, and more.
There will also be an attempt to get Lake Decatur into the Guinness Book of World Records for the most amount of recycled plastic bottle boats. The goal is to launch around 320 recycled plastic boats at the event from the beach.
The planning committee for the festival wanted to make it known that this festival is not only about acknowledging the history of Lake Decatur, but also about making community members feel they are a part of that history and a part of creating the memories that lie ahead.
“We, really as a planning committee, wanted to be sure that the people of Decatur and central Illinois understood that this Centennial Lake Fest was for them,” Endsley said.
