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Crooked Creek Days returns with new energy and old traditions
Jennifer Lemke steps up to lead beloved Winfield festival after last-minute call for help
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
WINFIELD — Just one month ago, Crooked Creek Days was in limbo.
With the clock ticking and no clear path forward, longtime Winfield resident Jennifer Wade Lemke got word that the annual celebration might not happen this year. That wasn’t something she could sit with.
“It just didn’t feel right to let it pause,” Lemke said. “Crooked Creek Days has been going on since I can remember — and I’m not young. So I said I’d help, and, well, that turned into taking on the responsibility.”
As of July 1, with exactly one month to go, Lemke officially took on the role of organizer. The task ahead was daunting, but she didn’t hesitate. She pulled in help from her five adult children and got to work rallying the community.
“When I take something on like this, I kind of drag them along, kicking and screaming,” she joked. “But they’ve been a huge help.”
Now, just four weeks later, the festival is back with a weekend packed full of music, food, contests, games, and deep-rooted tradition — and for Lemke, the planning has been as personal as it is public.
“When my kids were little, Crooked Creek Days was like our vacation,” she said. “We didn’t leave town. I’d cook all weekend, we’d hang out in the yard between events, and we’d see everyone — my classmates, neighbors, people we only see that one time a year. Even now that the kids are grown, they all come home for it.”
That full-circle feeling is woven into this year’s theme, “Cultivating Memories,” as Crooked Creek Days returns to Winfield from Aug. 1 through 3.
“I really wanted to take it back to the kids, while still having things for everybody,” she said. “I’ve raised my kids through this festival. I know what it’s like to show up with toddlers and try to afford a fun day, and I also know what it’s like to sit with friends and watch the parade go by. This year, I wanted something for all of that.”
The effort to bridge generations shows up in both the old and the new. On Friday evening, Lemke is bringing back the family-friendly dance, a once-popular tradition that faded in recent years.
“That was something that really was fun for my kids,” Lemke said. “We’d dress them up and take them uptown. It was something everyone looked forward to.”
New to Friday night is a chicken scramble and greased pig contest — events that promise a lot of laughs and even more photo-worthy moments. For the chicken scramble, kids are divided into age groups and tasked with catching a chicken in a fenced-in area. Younger groups will have a ribbon tied to the chicken’s leg to help; older kids go string-free. Once caught, the chicken must be carried to a tractor tire.
Then comes the greased pig contest.
“We’re going to grease everything up — them and the pig — and the first one to get it into the tractor tire wins,” Lemke said. “Kids have to be respectful of each other, good sports. I think we’ll get a lot of laughs out of it.”
Saturday kicks off with a pancake breakfast and a parade through town — a staple of Lemke’s childhood.
“My mom was big on parades,” she said. “She was on the council, and I was always in the parade as a kid. It was a big deal.”
That sense of occasion continues with the sand volleyball tournament, pet parade, pony rides, airbrush tattoos, inflatables, kids’ games, barrel racing, and the hot dog eating contest. Lemke has worked to ensure there's something around every corner for families with kids, teens, adults, and older residents alike.
“I remember years when it felt like the event leaned more toward the adults, or just toward the little kids — and that’s fine,” she said. “But this year, I wanted to really blend it. I want to see grandparents watching their grandkids race in the barrel contest, and I want young parents sitting down with an ice cream while their kids run off to the inflatables.”
One feature growing in popularity each year is the escape room, organized for the Winfield-Mt. Union Europe Trip group as a fundraiser for students. It’s become an unexpected favorite among families — and for Lemke, it’s now a tradition.
“My family splits into two teams and does it every year,” she said. “Dave Pieart creates it, and it’s so good — just creative and really fun. It’s becoming one of our favorite parts.”
The escape room serves as a fundraiser to help local students offset the cost of their big trip to Europe. Lemke said it’s a fun and challenging activity that offers something totally different.
“It gets the whole family thinking and working together,” she said. “It’s such a smart addition to the weekend — and you’re helping the kids at the same time.”
Saturday night ends with live music by Brass Pear and a street dance.
“We love adult night too,” she added.
Throughout the weekend, food options will abound. Between local fundraising meals and food trucks, there’s no shortage of variety: Kona Ice, mini doughnuts with candy toppings, JT SIPPs, the Cattlemen, pulled pork, chili cheese dogs, french fries, and the debut of the “Weenie Wagon,” run by a former Winfield resident returning just for the event.
“He moved away but wanted to come back and be part of it,” Lemke said. “That’s what this weekend does — it brings people home.”
Sunday begins with breakfast at the Winfield Historical Society and a community church service before shifting into the J.R. Hewitt Memorial Car Show and trophy presentation — one of the longest-running and most beloved events of the weekend.
The button drawing also returns, now stronger than it’s been in years.
“We went shopping and put together some amazing prizes,” Lemke said. “And we brought back the kids’ drawing too — about 30 prizes per age division. Every kid gets to come up and choose their prize when their name is called. That was always a huge deal for my kids. They didn’t even care what they got — they just wanted to hear their name.”
She also credits the festival’s revival to the overwhelming support of the local business community.
“I tried something new this year and asked businesses to sponsor specific events — cover the supplies, prizes, signage — and the response blew me away,” she said. “Some even reached out to me first. That support made this all possible.”
She also pointed to Winfield city clerk Angie Oepping as a key partner in pulling things together.
“I couldn’t have done this without her,” Lemke said. “Really — she’s been amazing.”
As the first weekend in August approaches, Lemke still is ticking through the details, hoping all the moving parts come together. But more than anything, she’s ready to watch the town gather — just like it always has.
“I’ve seen the vision in my head,” she said. “Now I just want to see people out there, smiling, laughing, being together. That’s what this is about.”
Crooked Creek Days runs Friday, Aug. 1 through Sunday, Aug. 3 in Winfield. More information is available at the Winfield Crooked Creek Days Facebook page.
Comments: AnnaMarie.Kruse@southeastiowaunion.com
