COVE — The Cove Community Association hosts its 24th annual Cove Cherry Fair on Saturday, Aug. 17, at the Ascension Camp & Conference Center, 1104 Church St.

Admission is free and all are welcome to this day of community fun.

Amy Jayne, CCA vice president, and Sarah West are members of the Cherry Fair organizers and spokespersons for the festival.

“Our entire community and surrounding area are getting together to celebrate who we are, our culture, and supporting our local artists and businesses,” Jayne said. “We continue to celebrate our historic cherry fair in the same place it’s been celebrated since 1911.”

The day starts at 7 a.m. with a sourdough pancake breakfast (pancakes, eggs, sausage, juice and coffee) that benefits the Cove Education Foundation. The cost is $9 for adults and $4 for ages 5-11 or $1 for just coffee.

The meal is served in the Ascension School Founder’s Hall dining room until 11 a.m.

The 5K fun run/walk starts at 8 a.m., but registration is at 6 a.m. For the 5K, participants must load the bus at 7 a.m. from the Ascension School.

The 1-mile run starts at 9 a.m. at the school. Entry is $29.56 for the 5K and $24.25 for the 1-mile run. All proceeds from the run support the Cove Community Association and Cove School District FFA.

The community parade follows at 10 a.m. with grand marshal Renee Sjostrom of Warm Creek Orchard presiding. This year’s theme is “Cherry Fairy Float.” The route runs on Highway 237 from Ash Street and south through Cove, ending at Church Street next to the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Parade entries are welcome — visit covecherryfair.com/parade for details on how to enter.

Live music will be provided all day, including Slapjack Casualty from noon to 2 p.m. and Ted McBride from 2-4 p.m. The music genre includes Americana, rock, folk and blues.

At the Ascension School lawn, contest activities begin: cherry pit-spitting, polite pie eating (pinkies out), and hands-free pie eating (messy!) contests for prizes. There are old-fashioned lawn games just for fun and activities for kids, like the Hog Wild train, face painting, fire department bubbles and kids’ crafts.

Mingle among the oodles of vendors representing local artists, crafters, jewelry-makers and talented product creators. There will also be food vendors, a tap truck and K Voelz Wines on hand.

In the evening, the Cove Drive-in will host a ring-toss tournament, karaoke and live local music.

“We’ll have a quilt show also, and we always have a cherry-themed quilt that we raffle off,” West said. “The raffle winner is announced at 4 p.m. but you don’t have to be present to win.”

See the full schedule of events at Cherry Fair at covecherryfair.com.

“We’re delighted to welcome our neighbors from Union County and beyond to celebrate the historic Cherry Fair,” Jayne said. “Come join us for a day of fun as we support each other, our businesses, artists and our residents.”