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150 still big despite rain

CALUMET – Debbie Streiter had a table set up Saturday in Agassiz Park to sell her Tupperware items at the Calumet Township sesquicentennial celebration, but the rainy conditions concerned her.

Streiter said she was at the Pasty Fest in the park in June and it rained then, which hurt her sales.

“It really came down,” she said of the rain.

However, the organizers of the Big 150 celebrations rented tents for the street fair, which pleased Streiter.

“They had a backup plan,” she said.

The event organizers have been planning the celebration for quite awhile, and Streiter said the rain may have kept some people away.

“I feel bad for the community,” she said.

Dave Geisler, village of Calumet president, and one of the Big 150 organizers, said the Big 150 committee was very concerned about the possibility of rain, and they spent several days trying to decide what to do if there was rain. Although there was discussion about moving the vendors and musicians into the Calumet Colosseum, they decided instead to rent tent canopies.

“I think we did a great job of getting everything under cover,” he said.

Despite the rain Friday, Geisler said there was a good crowd for the the two bands which played.

Most of the vendors did show up Saturday for the street fair, Geisler said, but some did cancel, partly because of how far they had to travel, which he understood.

“The number of vendors that did show up, it’s great,” he said.

One of the people attending the Big 150 was Harold Heikkinen of Atlantic Mine, who said he also attended the township celebration in 1966.

Although the Big 150 parade was cancelled because of the rain, Heikkinen was waiting on Fifth Street for the start of the Great D+eer Chase mountain bicycle race. He said he also stood on Fifth Street for the centennial parade, and it was well attended.

“The whole street was crowded,” he said.

Attending the street fair Saturday were Hartha Hughes of Ironwood and her daughter-in-law, Amy Hughes of Hancock. They were talking with vendor Sue Vernier who was selling items from Steeped Tea.

Amy Hughes said she and Hartha weren’t concerned about the rain Saturday.

“We heard there would be a tent,” she said.

Vernier said she wasn’t concerned the rain would keep people away from the event.

“Hey,” she said. “We’re Yoopers.”

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