It’s the season for small-town fall festivals, and this weekend we have several in the Wichita area. Community festivals like these always promise good old-fashioned (and cheap) family fun. Most include parades, games for kids, live music, and food vendors. Some require a button purchase for a nominal fee, but some are free. Carnival rides, if they have them, almost always cost extra.

Rose Hill Fall Festival Thursday – Sunday, October 7 – 10, 2010 A long-running festival with established events. The Turtle Races and children’s Pedal Tractor Pull attract hundreds of competitors each year! The $2 festival button gets you into most activities at no extra charge, including the Emergency Services Chaplains Chili Feed and Cook-Off, Quilt and Craft Shows, the street dance featuring TEN DAY WISH on Saturday night, even the Rose Hill Recreation Center Community Picnic (free hot dogs and hamburgers with your button) at Shorty Cox Park at noon on Sunday. Find location information and a complete schedule of events at the Rose Hill Recreation Center website.

Bethel College Fall Festival in Newton. Thursday – Sunday, October 7-10, 2010 A $3 festival button gets you into some activities, including the Kauffman Museum (open Friday 9:30 a.m. – 4 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. – 5 p.m., Sunday 1:30-4:30 p.m.), all-ages Ultimate Frisbee (Saturday 2-3:30 p.m.), and select music and dance performances, but the children’s park, football game, Buffalo BBQ, and some of the fine arts performances require separate ticket purchases. You can download a complete schedule of events at the Bethel College Fall Festival website.

Maize Fall Festival Friday and Saturday, October 8 – 9, 2010 The theme this year is “Go Green — Live Clean” and the festivities begin Friday night with a Car Bash — apparently to drive home the point about recycling. You can also bring cell phones, glasses, and hearing aids to the festival headquarters to be recycled. Saturday begins with a $5 pancake feed and ribbon-cutting for the newly remodeled school building and then a $10 fun run/walk (to work off the pancakes!). The fun continues with the parade at 10 a.m., activities all day long, an ice cream social at 2:30 p.m., live entertainment beginning at 4 p.m., and finishes with fireworks at dusk. More information about the Maize Fall Festival can be found at the Maize Lions Club website.

Haven Fall Festival Saturday, October 9, 2010 A parade, classic car show, pie-eating contest, hamburger feed, and more are among some of the traditional events you can enjoy with your $3 Haven Fall Festival button. But a couple of events set this festival apart from the rest: a Ninnescah Valley Bike Tour and the Running of Alpacas and Llamas (!). The evening finishes out with a street dance with live music and fireworks. Get a schedule of the day’s events at the Haven Fall Festival webpage.

Have I missed any community fall festivals this weekend? Please let me know in the Comments section below!