Since its inception in 2008, the Get Down Downtown festival has been coordinated by Main Street Searcy, a non-profit organization focused on serving the downtown area through building restoration, small business recruitment and training, and other revitalization and maintenance oriented projects.

Amy Burton, director of Main Street Searcy, has been involved with Get Down Downtown since its beginning.

“Searcy needed something big and community-driven that was open to everybody,” Burton said. “We were wondering ‘Where can we make our mark? What is going to make a big impact on this community?’ We didn’t have anything of this caliber. We didn’t have that one big Searcy festival that we could hang our hat on.”

Get Down Downtown will see its ninth year in downtown Searcy this month. A big emphasis has been placed this year on live music with a variety of artists performing on the Sunrise Motorsports Stage, such as the Nashville-based group The Nobility, country artist Keith Anderson, worship artists Edge Worship and the New Life Church Worship Band, and American Idol contestants Sean Michel and Tristan McIntosh, and several others.

The Hopkins Braces Kids’ Zone will provide children with many activities, such as face painting, pony rides, sack races and carnival games.

There will also be vendors operated by both local businesses and independent professionals providing food, crafts, artwork and other products and services.

Senior public relations major Parker Morrow works as a Main Street Searcy intern during the school year.

“This event helps Harding students connect with their community more and put them in touch with both company and personalized vendors from Searcy and the surrounding area,” Morrow said.

Many students and organizations have volunteered or partnered with Main Street Searcy for Get Down Downtown in the past, including numerous social clubs and the College of Pharmacy. Morrow expressed his desire for Harding to continue its involvement in the festival.

“I definitely think that students need to be more involved in the Searcy community and not just the Harding community,” Morrow said.

The festival will kick off around 5:45 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 23 with a performance from the Searcy High School Band. The festivities will continue until 10 p.m. that night and from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 24. Admission is free.