One Week Away from Corvette Welcome Fest Downtown Party

The City of Effingham’s Tourism Office will be hosting the Corvette Welcome Fest Downtown Party from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday, September 17, to kick-off Mid America Motorworks’ 22nd Annual Corvette Funfest, and residents are invited to join in welcoming Corvette enthusiasts to Effingham.

Mid America Motorworks’ Fun Run Road Tour will end in downtown Effingham, with a Corvette parade (including candy), coming down Jefferson Avenue and ending at the Courthouse square.  The Corvettes are expected to arrive downtown around 5:15 – 5:30 p.m. and residents are invited to turn out for the parade. Following the parade, the Corvettes will park along Jefferson Avenue, around the Historic Courthouse Museum lawn and parking lots adjacent to the square.

“We are expecting over 500-600 Corvettes to participate in this year’s downtown party, a significant increase from previous years,” said Effingham Tourism Director Jodi Thoele.  “The Corvette Welcome Fest is a great opportunity for us to welcome visitors to our community, but also, for residents to come and check out some one-of-a-kind Corvettes and enjoy the downtown festivities. We have a great lineup this year.”

Activities that evening will include a Gabby Goat & Martin's IGA cookout, in addition to other sweet treats including Aunt Kim’s Kettle corn and Tropical Sno. You can also enjoy live musical entertainment by Allie Keck, dance performances from Cayla's Power Tumbling, giveaways, and of course, a chance to see a variety of Corvettes!

“There will be a lot of activity downtown that evening, and we hope residents will join us,” said Thoele. There are some additional activities going on during the downtown party this year. “Some of the Corvette enthusiasts will be throwing out candy, along with Mid America Motorworks’ Tram, which will be helping to lead the parade again this year, so we hope to have plenty of families lined up along Jefferson Avenue to enjoy the cars and candy.  We hope everyone will come out and enjoy a great night in our beautiful downtown area,” said Thoele. There will also be Celebrity Choice Award winners announced during the downtown party. In addition, some of the downtown businesses, including the Effingham County Courthouse Museum, will also stay open late to accommodate our Corvette visitors and Effingham community.

Mid America Motorworks’ Annual Corvette Funfest is expected to bring in over 40,000 visitors to Effingham over the weekend. The event will be held from September 17 to 20 on Mid America’s campus on north U.S. 45.

For more information on the Thursday night event, contact the Effingham Tourism department at 217-342-5310 or visit www.VisitEffinghamIL.com. For more information about events at Mid America Motorworks, visit www.FunfestEvents.com.