On Saturday, June 7 and Sunday, June 8, 2025, the 38th annual Celebrate! West Hartford festival included music, games, food, and a whole lot of fun! 

By Roz Green. Photos by Roz Green and Ronni Newton

Thousands of people all over the community came out to Celebrate! West Hartford at their 2025 festival, the town’s 38th annual event. With over 150 arts and crafts exhibitors, 27 food vendors, and a plethora of games and rides as well as music, there was something for everyone to enjoy.

From handmade clothes and jewelry to colorful soaps and paintings, community members had the chance to explore a variety of artwork while simultaneously enjoying the atmosphere of the event. The music and chatter filled the streets and the vibrant community made this 38th Celebrate! West Hartford festival one to remember.

There were many great activities for people to partake in. Not only were there carnival rides, but there was also mini golf and a petting zoo – and the West Hartford Fire Department booth also offered a chance for people to learn hands-only CPR. New to the festival this year was the dunk tank, offering people a chance to dunk a firefighter or other community after learning CPR and with a $3 donation. “The fire department got $761 for donation to the food pantry. That equates to about 250 people who learned hands-only CPR. A big shout out to Sen. Derek Slap and Lieutenant Ryan Shea,” stated Fire Chief Greg Priest.

Priest volunteered for a shift in the dunk tank himself, and department members made sure that he got wet.

For food options, no one was going hungry. From Hawaiian shaved ice to Mexican street corn, there was delicious food everywhere. Children were walking around with ice cream dripping down their chins, and with pretzels bigger than their heads.

Middle and high school bands provided musical entertainment on Saturday, while on Sunday evening, people danced freely and joyfully to the music of Fever and Personal Touch. The rain somewhat dampened the crowd on Saturday – and there was a brief shutdown of activities due to lightning nearby – but the festival remained reopened and stayed open until 6 p.m. The turnout on Sunday was stated to be one of the biggest yet, with about 80 bikes parked along the bike corral on Burr Street sponsored by Bike West Hartford.

A big thank you to all the volunteers and vendors for making this weekend a huge success!