United Methodist Church booth set up at the Toledo Stoplight Festival. Photo by Cyote Williams
On July 8, the Toledo Stoplight Festival made its long-awaited return to the plaza del Palau de Justice de Toledo.
The courthouse lawn was flooded with residents from both Tama and Toledo, with smiles and lawn chairs as they sat and enjoyed the weather and live music.
Live music was performed by Katie & The Honky Tonks as well as My Fellow Americans, each band performing for two of the four hour festival.
Food vendors were lined up along North Broadway. There was everything from burgers, pizza and Indian tacos available for consumption.
Normally reserved for the Toledo Farmers Market on Friday night, the Farmers Market was still around and enjoyed a boost in business thanks to the festival.
Opal & Hazel’s wood-fired pizza from Vinton, Iowa’s bakery in action at the Toledo Stoplight Festival. Photo by Cyote Williams
“It was an amazing night and all the vendors did a great job!” said an excited Cindy Richardson.
The children in attendance were able to enjoy several bounce houses thanks to the firemen and a water fight game that involved using a fire hose to push a barrel through a rope, like a tug-of-war.
Two of the main organizers of the event were Toledo Mayor Brian Sokol and Travis Mullen.
This combination has entered a forest when organizing the event. Mullen handles the entertainment and food vendors, while Sokol handles the logistics of putting on an event like this.
Sokol was present, happy with the turnout.
Children playing tug-of-war-style water game created by firefighters at the Toledo Festival of Lights. Photo by Cyote Williams
“It’s nice to have the opportunity to bring the community together, with an enjoyable event for the kids,” Sokol said.
Although the Stoplight Festival predates Covid-19, Mullen stressed the importance of gatherings like this one.
After two years of cancellations due to the pandemic, both Sokol and Mullen were happy with the increased turnout to finally be able to host a large-scale event.
“The reason we created this event was to get people out of their homes and create a greater sense of community.” Mullen said.
“We needed something to build the festival around, and we already had a quirky, cool traffic light right here, so it was perfect” Mullen continued.
Bubba’s Burnt Ends BBQ in Marshalltown, Iowa serving the crowd at the Toledo Stoplight Festival. Photo by Cyote Williams
Similar to the Lincoln Highway Bridge Festival, Cat Trax’s Kathy Campbell returned to Tama to be the sound engineer for the live music, to whom Mullen showed his appreciation.
“She has always been our sound engineer, I wanted to send her a big thank you,” Mullen said.
After two years of cancellations and delays, it goes without saying that the Stoplight Festival did its job. In an ever-changing world, nothing can bring communities together like good food, live music and a good time.
United Methodist Church booth set up at the Toledo Stoplight Festival. Photo by Cyote Williams
Opal & Hazel’s wood-fired pizza from Vinton, Iowa’s bakery in action at the Toledo Stoplight Festival. Photo by Cyote Williams
Children playing tug-of-war-style water game created by firefighters at the Toledo Festival of Lights. Photo by Cyote Williams
Bubba’s Burnt Ends BBQ in Marshalltown, Iowa serving the crowd at the Toledo Stoplight Festival. Photo by Cyote Williams
The bounce house provided by the Toledo Fire Department in the background of the crowd at the Stoplight Festival. Photo by Cyote Williams
Katie and the Honky Tonks of Waterloo performing their set at the Toledo Stoplight Festival. Photo by Cyote Williams
One of the bounce houses in action that was set up at the Toledo Stoplight Festival. Photo by Michael Davis.
The bounce house provided by the Toledo Fire Department in the background of the crowd at the Stoplight Festival. Photo by Cyote Williams
Katie and the Honky Tonks of Waterloo performing their set at the Toledo Stoplight Festival. Photo by Cyote Williams
One of the bounce houses in action that was set up at the Toledo Stoplight Festival. Photo by Michael Davis.
