Donnie Donohou, left, helps his daughter Delaney, right, during the Frog Jumping Contest at Frontier Days in Milford.

Donnie Donohou, left, helps his daughter Delaney, right, during the Frog Jumping Contest at Frontier Days in Milford.
By Kristin Rover
Sun staff

The 51st annual Frontier Days festival in Milford drew people from across Clermont County May 30-June 2 despite several rain showers throughout the weekend.

The four day festival featured a parade, musical entertainment, rides, games, a variety of food vendors, several competitions, and more.

Frontier Days Chairman Darrell Baumann said the festival went well, but turnout on Friday and Saturday was affected by rain that moved into the area.

“It’s a festival so you’ll have rain at times and then you won’t have rain,” Baumann said. “We are all happy though, we weren’t disappointed. And we’ll do it again next year.”

Baumann said the weather and the turnout for the parade on Thursday was fantastic. He said Friday evening the rain deterred a lot of people from coming out, and then on Saturday evening rain moved in again.

“Saturday it rained from 5-9 and it just killed us,” Baumann said.

Baumann said on Sunday the crowd picked back up some before the event ended in the early evening.

“It’s local community fun,” Melissa Wilson, of Milford, said about why she decided to come to the festival.

Wilson said she lives just a few blocks away from the festival grounds and brought her 15-month-old daughter, Junie, to the event to ride the carousel and see the sights.

The rides and games were popular with children throughout the weekend, and the event also featured a gambling tent for adults.

Many residents said they came to Frontier Days when they were children, and now they are bringing their children back to the event.

“We’ve been coming here every year for 30 years,” Joe Bacon, of Owensville, said about the festival. “It’s just a lot of fun, and now the kids get to have fun.”

Tellessia Berling, of Milford, said she has also been coming to the festival for years.

“I think it brings a lot of people together and back together again,” Berling said about the event.

The festival kicked-off with the parade May 30 that featured dozens of floats and hundreds of participants. Residents lined Main Street and Lila Avenue to catch a glimpse of the parade as it passed.

Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the festival featured live musical entertainment from Four on the Floor, the Cef Michael Band, Cheap Thrill, Clermont Festival Chorale, and more.

Saturday a slew of children, and more than 40 frogs, participated in the Frog Jumping Contest, sponsored by All About Kids. Cash prizes were given to the winners of the competition.

In addition to activities and entertainment, a variety of food and beverage vendors were on the festival grounds, including vendors who use the event to raise funds for their organizations.

Emily White, an employee at Roads Rivers and Trails, volunteered to serve food for Big Papa Slims during the event.

She said her and other local employees volunteered to work the food stand while owners, Jeff and Shiela Goetz, attended a graduation ceremony.

White said it is fun to help other members of the community and to participate in the festival.

“That’s the beauty of it,” White said. “Seeing the community come together.”

Baumann said they will begin planning for next year’s festival next January. He said the 52nd annual Frontier Days will be held June 5-8. For more information about Frontier Days, visit www.frontierdaysmilford.com.