Elkader Sweet Corn Days is a go

By Audrey Posten, Times-Register

Elkader’s annual Sweet Corn Days celebration is a go for July 23-26. The event committee, after gathering feedback from local businesses, officials, volunteers and community members, made the decision to move forward last week following an anonymous vote.

“Our volunteer committee that gives up so much of their time to selflessly put this festival on for the community took this decision very seriously,” read a statement regarding the announcement. “This decision was not an easy one and every one of our community members’ opinions and thoughts were weighed heavily and taken into consideration. Honestly, it would have been easier to cancel, but the volunteers on our committee voted for what they feel is best for our community and we are incredibly grateful for the overwhelming community support to move forward. We understand this is an opinion that not all will support, but we are hopeful the community will be respectful of the process, our due diligence and final decision.”

“We really wanted to have as many viewpoints as possible to make the best decision,” said one of the organizers, Danielle Shea, who led a June 30 committee meeting that welcomed public input.

The goal, she noted, is to strike a balance, providing the community with a fun festival while implementing COVID-19 preventative measures put in place by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Iowa Department of Public Health and the governor’s public health disaster emergency proclamation.

Some feared preventative measures wouldn’t be enough, or would prove unenforceable. Both the Clayton County Board of Health and MercyOne Elkader Medical Center advised against holding Sweet Corn Days, citing an uptick in COVID-19 cases both nationwide and in Clayton County.

“I personally love to have a good time, and I do understand the importance to the economy and camaraderie in the community,” said MercyOne Elkader CEO Brooke Kensinger, “but, on the other hand, I’m concerned because of the risk to citizens. There’s a second surge occurring, and it’s affecting young people. If one person with COVID-19 came, we could have an outbreak.”

One medical professional who spoke at the June 30 meeting said virus activity in Clayton County has remained relatively low, though, with no new cases for much of June. 

Committee members noted some other communities have continued to hold events, including the Fayette County Fair, which will take place the same weekend as Sweet Corn Days. They argued the festival won’t bring in more people from out of town than already frequent the area. Of 1,000 visitors to Osborne since June 1, none of them have been local, said Clayton County Conservation Office Manager Molly Scherf. Pedretti’s Bakery reported up to 85 percent of visitors on Saturdays have been from outside Elkader.

Shea said roughly 81 percent of businesses polled were in favor of holding Sweet Corn Days. The event is seen as a helpful economic stimulus. 

Seventy-eight percent of volunteers favored moving forward, she added, and, of 542 community respondents to an online poll, around 53 percent claimed they would attend the event no matter what. Another 20 percent said they would come to Sweet Corn Days with precautions in place, while 27 percent vowed to stay home.

Committee member Mitch Seitz, who’s also Elkader’s police chief, said the event’s impact on the community has to be considered. But the biggest risk, he reasoned, may not be contracting coronavirus.

“We can’t lose our sense of community,” he said, “or we’ll have bigger problems than the virus. I think events are essential for overall health.”

“Letting fear control our lives is not right,” Shea agreed.

The Sweet Corn Days Committee is now working out details for each event to align with CDC and IDPH recommendations. As individual event plans are finalized,  information will be released on the Elkader Sweet Corn Days Facebook page and website. 

“People would be negligent in thinking we haven’t done our due diligence,” Shea assured. 

She said the committee is proud of what it’s accomplished not only for the event, but for Elkader, and hopes that will continue this year.

“We continue to do it because we love Elkader.