Virginia Scots-Irish Festival on 9 April

Lexington’s Fifth Annual Scots/Irish Festival Set April 9
The Sheep Dog Trials are back this year at the 5th Annual Scots Irish Heritage Festival!!

Lexington, VA- Lexington’s Fifth Annual Scots/Irish Heritage Festival will be held Sat., April 9th, from 10am to 5pm on the Maury River Middle School campus. Weather permitting, the event will be held outside but will be moved indoors in the case of inclement weather. The goal of the event is to present the culture of the Scots/Irish, and the lasting impact they made on the history of the Shenandoah Valley.

The festival will start with a parade at 10am. Attraction are scheduled throughout the day and will include Highland games demonstrations, Medieval Reenactments, living history presentations, vintage British Cars (weather permitting), music, entertainment, traditional food items, craft demonstrations and a variety of other vendors that represent the culture and its importance to the Valley. “The biggest news this year is that we are bringing back sheepdog demonstrations, a huge crowd favorite,” said John Morman of Celtic Tides.

The Highland games demonstration will display events that take part in Highland Festivals. The Highland games are believed to be one way Celtic societies used to determine the worthiness of their future leaders and a “safe” means for men to stay in shape.

Virginia Military Institute, Virginia Highland Pipes and Drums, Shenandoah Valley Pipes and Drums and Warpipe will give pipe and drum performances. Mary Smith of Richmond, Carl Peterson of Kutztown, PA. and Cranruach of Lexington will perform traditional Scots/ Irish/Welsh and Breton music on a variety of instruments.

The event is primarily sponsored by the Lexington Lions Club and The Chamber of Commerce, serving Lexington Buena Vista and Rockbridge County. Other confirmed sponsors are VMI and Bath Fitter; additional sponsors may be added later.

Admission for the event is $5 dollars for adults, $3 for children (ages 6-16) and no fee for children under six. Proceeds from the event will go to the Lexington Lions Club's project at the Rockbridge Area Free Clinic, where a complete vision Center is being installed.

For more information about the event visit www.lexcelts.com or contact The Chamber of Commerce, serving Lexington, Buena Vista and Rockbridge County at (540) 463-5375 or by email to lisa@lexrockchamber.com.