April's Garden Gate Festival in Huntingburg Cancelled Due to Coronavirus Fears

FROM LOCAL SOURCES

HUNTINGBURG -- Organizers of the annual Garden Gate Festival in Huntingburg have cancelled the April 18th festival, according to a statement released by the Dubois County Chamber of Commerce Tuesday morning.

Organizers say they are "heartbroken" for the vendors, participants and the Huntingburg downtown community but made the decision based on recommendations from the CDC to limit crowd sizes.

Statement released by the Dubois County Chamber of Commerce regarding Garden Gate Festival: 

“On Sunday, March 15th the CDC released a recommendation that for the next 8 weeks organizers should cancel or postpone events that consist of 50 people or more people [the White House now recommends groups be no larger than 10 people in size].  The Garden Gate committee of the Dubois County Chamber of Commerce has reviewed this and all recommendations and realize we must make the decision to cancel the Garden Gate Festival scheduled for April 18th. We will continue to monitor the situation over the next few weeks, before a decision is made on a postponement date.

We are heartbroken for our vendors and those who enjoy participating in the festival. We are also heartbroken for the Huntingburg downtown community and the economic impact they will feel with the loss of this event in April.  The Garden Gate Festival is a strong supporter of the Huntingburg community and we would like to encourage those who have the means to keep supporting our locally-owned small businesses throughout the county.

The Golden Ticket Raffle that was also scheduled for April 18th will still happen but will become a "virtual" event. Golden Raffle Tickets are still available at Gehlhausen's Flowers and Lush Esthetics. The proceeds will benefit the Huntingburg Merchant Association and their need is now greater than ever. "