Lenders Bagelfest

= Bagelfest =

Started in the 1986, Bagelfest was introduced to Mattoon, Illinois by Murray Lender and the Mattoon Chamber of Commerce to get the town excited about being the new home of his family’s bagel manufacturing plant, Lender's Bagels Company, which employs 280 people [http://www.herald-review.com/articles/2008/07/19/news/local/1034200.txt] for bagels and french toast sticks. It's a weekend-long event dedicated to those delicious bagels. Some 40,000 people show up for Murray's largest free bagel breakfast in the world and eat a whopping 70,000 bagels. For the 10th Anniversary of BagelFest, Murray set out to make the world's biggest bagel, which made Guinness Book of World Records. It weighed in at a whopping 563 pounds and in 1998 Murray made "The World's Berry Biggest Bagel" [http://www.villageprofile.com/illinois/mattoon/08.html] which weighed in at an incredible 765 pounds.On day one, it typically begins with the Bagel Fest Queen Pageant, and lasts three days. Another local favorite and festival highlight is the worlds largest bagel breakfast on the last day. Other activities include, Run for the Bagel Race, Parade, Bingo, Bagel Baby Contest, Bagel Bow Wow Dog contest, Art In The Park, Beer Tent, food and craft verndors, and various musical acts. More activities are always added year after year

Activities & Events

*Bagel Beauty Queen Pageant
*Run For The Bagel Race
*Parade
*Bingo
*Bagel Baby Contest
*Bow Wow Dog Contest
*Art in The Park
*Beer Tent
*Craft Vendors
*Flea Markets

Food

Every year they give away more than 50,000 bagels, with cream cheese, honey, butter, and jelly.For more than 70 years, Lender’s® has brought the authentic taste of New York-style bagels to the masses. Today, Lender’s® stands as the undisputed bagel leader in the North America. No other bagel comes close in terms of recognition and acceptance.

Lender’s® offers a wide selection of high-quality bagels, including Traditional Bagels & Bagelettes, Individually Wrapped Bagels, Premium Bagel Shoppe Bagels, as well as frozen and refrigerated varieties. You won’t find better variety or, frankly, better bagels anywhere else.

Performances

Every year the local talents come out to play, however there are also always those features artists. In 2008 Keith Anderson, [http://www.jg-tc.com/articles/2008/04/15/news/doc4803b0811f5e3306551285.prt] a songwriter with two top 10 hits and honors as Billboard’s top new male artist of 2005 and Ashton Shepherd, a young Alabama singer with an alluring voice producing vocals in songs like “Sounds So Good” were the featured artists. 2007 featured Emerson Drive and Luke Bryan. It also mustn't go unsaid that the Glenn Miller Orchestra and the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra have entertained at recent BagelFests.

Works Cited

1. Meeker, Herb. "Two young performers to entertain at Bagelfest." Journal Gazette/ Times-Courier (Mattoon/Charleston, Illinois), April 14, 2008. http://www.jg-tc.com/articles/2008/04/14/news/doc4803b0811f5e3306551285.txt (accessed October 1, 2008).

2. Taylor, Nelson. "Baglefest." 2 Camel. http://www.2camels.com/bagelfest.php (accessed October 1, 2008).

3. WILL-TV. "Bagelfest." February-March 26, 2007. Bagelfest. Mpeg4. http://will.illinois.edu/prairiefire/segment/pf2007-02-22-b (accessed October 1, 2008

4. Harris, Peggy. "Baking A Bigger Bagel." Herald & Review, July 21, 1998. http://www.heraldandreview.com/ (accessed October 1, 2008).

External Links

http://www.mattoonchamber.com/http://www.pinnaclefoodscorp.com/public/brands/lenders.htm