‘It is like a big family’

MINGO — From the Mingo Men’s Club racing rubber ducks down stream near Indian Creek to water battles with the fire department, many children in Mingo left the town’s annual celebration with some paint on their faces, a belly full of street tacos and a big smile on their faces.

Last weekend, the town of more than 300 people hosted its annual Mingo Days. From a variety of kid-friendly activities to games geared to adults, this year’s Mardi Gras-themed festivities had something for everyone to enjoy.

“Just seeing everyone having such a good time and being together is the most rewarding part of Mingo Days,” Mingo Planning Days Committee member Theresa Maher said.

In typical fashion, this year’s town celebration in Mingo brought back several festivities Mingo Days have been known for throughout the years — the street dance at Greencastle Tavern, the car and tractor show, the friendly softball game with Baxter, the cakewalk and the 5K.

By upholding these traditions, several longtime residents and newcomers alike were shown why Mingo is special — the tight community.

“It is like a big family. All the kids play together and have a blast,” Mingo Fire Department EMT and three-year resident Nichole Warrick said. “My favorite part of Mingo Days is the closeness of the community. Everybody is friendly.”

Despite the planning committee continuing these traditions in this year’s Mingo Days, the organizers said by adding a few new things, from moving the parade to Friday evening to the Colfax Mexican restaurant, Cocina Hernandez’s food truck serving tasty treats throughout the three-day celebration, the group was able to get people excited about Mingo Days this year, and inspire hometown pride into the younger generation.

“We all have little ones. We want to make it fun for them and get them interested when they get older,” Warrick said. “We want to make them proud of their town. Sometimes they don’t get to see everybody around all the time. When you have these celebrations, everybody gets together and hangs out.”

From Mingo natives who moved away to residents who just moved into town, this celebration allowed the community to get together and celebrate the town they love over good food, a few beers and countless fun activities.

“You don’t want your town to die for any reason,” Maher said. “This is one celebration that kind of brings everybody back into town, and have pride in what their community is and what is going on in it.”

According to Maher, the annual Mingo Days festivities present a perfect opportunity to allow several residents to reconnect with people they have not seen in a while. Residents said no matter how much time has passed, the celebration guarantees a good time.

“We had a gal come back (my husband) Ryan and I knew when we were still dating and hadn’t seen her since — 28 years ago. She was back for the weekend,” she said. “That is what it is all about — getting the community together just to have a good time. Everybody can relax and have fun.”

For more information about this year's town celebration, find Mingo Days on Facebook.

Contact Anthony Victor Reyes at areyes@jaspercountytribune.com