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Published: Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2012 / Updated: Monday, Oct. 15, 2012 12:15 PM

Lake Wylie Fall Festival Oct. 28 at new location

LAKE WYLIE -- 

Last year’s Lake Wylie Fall Festival was such a success, organizers had to rethink how they could host it again. They figured it out.

Lake Wylie Fall Festival will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. Oct. 28 in the Lakeside West shopping center parking lot, off Blucher Circle. Mainly run by New River Community Church volunteers, partners this year include Lake Wylie Bowl N’ Bounce and the YMCA at the new location.

“This has never been advertised as the ‘New River’ fall festival,” said Jesse Bowles, connections pastor at the church. “This is the Lake Wylie Fall Festival. It’s kind of our yearly gift to the community.”

The event, several years old, last year was held in the Bi-Lo parking lot. But with more than 4,000 people attending, organizers decided this year to move the event to the parking lot between QuikTrip and Lake Wylie Bowl N’ Bounce/YMCA.

Included will be games, rides, inflatable and music – all free.

“It takes about two or three hundred people to pull something like this off,” Bowles said.

Sheri Garren oversees the food. The new location will help accommodate more people, she said, plus it’s a sign of how well the event and area are doing. It wasn’t long ago the parking lot sat empty before the recent openings at Lakeside West.

“It’s great to see that Lake Wylie itself is growing,” Garren said.

In each of her four years working, the event has grown. Last year’s record number is a testament to the appeal of free family fun, Garren said.

“It’s probably something the community looks forward to,” she said. “Most of our people are usually helping with it. Most of it is just community.”

For more information, visit nrcc.net.