Luverne to celebrate Buffalo Days this weekend

Luverne’s 39th annual Buffalo Days Celebration is set for this weekend, with four days of events and activities for community participation.
The lineup features classic Buffalo Days events like the Friday Night Cruise-In and the Saturday morning Loop run, Main Street parade and vendor event in the Courthouse Square.
“We are excited to welcome everyone to Luverne this weekend,” said Luverne Chamber Director Jane Lanphere. 
“Again this year, we say ‘hats off’ to our community partners for doing their part to offer so many special things to do for the four-day weekend.”
The 33rd Classic Car Cruise-In will be from 6 to 10:30 p.m. Friday with live music by Starfire and a beer garden and food court. Take 16 will host a block party with Buffalo Gal concessions at 4:45 p.m. and music by Chavez and Friends at 6 p.m.
Saturday morning’s Buffalo Days Run for a Cause, a benefit for Carson’s Cause (see related story), starts at 7 a.m. in the Luverne City Park, and the parade starts at 10 a.m. on the corner of Freeman and Main streets near the Palace and heads east.
The Buffalo Days Expo in the Courthouse Square (formerly at the city park) starts at 9 a.m. in the Courthouse Square with 48 vendors, live music, family activities and 11 different food vendors.
“The Expo will provide a wonderful opportunity to shop for handmade and unique items from vendors from the Tri-State area including students from the CEO program.”
New to the Expo this year will be the Magic Art Bus from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. with kids’ interactive glow art, stone painting and mini plant hangers for 13 and older.
Throughout the weekend, more than 60 youth baseball teams will be in town for the Junior Legion Buffalo Days Tournament.
“The town will be busy,” Lanphere said. “We encourage you to come out and support all the businesses and organizations who have put together the first full weekend event of the summer.”
The complete daily events schedule can be found on the front page of the May 27 Luverne Announcer, which can also be viewed at www.star-herald.com.
 
‘Tour de Loop’ adds fourth day to weekend
New to the Buffalo Days lineup this year will be a Thursday event — the Tour de Loop — that organizers hope will become an annual fourth day lead-in to the weekend.
It’s a community bicycle ride on Luverne’s Loop that features prizes awarded for stops on the seven-mile trail.
This year the community will celebrate the recent trail completion with a 5:30 p.m. ribbon-cutting and grand opening festivities that include free Take 16 root beer floats, music and food by Wildflowers and Bluestem Catering.
“It’s going to be a family-friendly community bike ride,” Lanphere said.
“This year, because we’re celebrating the completion of this beautiful trail system through our community, we’re pulling out all the stops.”
 
Tales from the Graves moves to History Center
The popular Tales from the Graves historic reenactments for the Historical Society will move this year from Maplewood Cemetery to the plaza on East Main Street
Featured characters this year include Simon Skovgaard, Edia Headley, Margaret Vegge and Hugo Goehle, representing a broad spectrum of eras in Rock County history and a variety of professions.
Performances start at 1, 2 and 3 p.m. and pie and ice cream will be served from 1 to 4 p.m. as a fundraiser for the Historical Society.
For questions about Buffalo Days, the Chamber can be reached at 507-283-4061 or luvernechamber.com.