Local students organize MadFest for day of fun, service
MADISON – A brand new festival is bringing the city of Madison together for fun and service this weekend, and it’s all organized by local high school students.
The inaugural MadFest is happening this Saturday, May 4 at the Madison City Stadium. It will have all the trappings of a fun festival with artisan vendors, hot air balloon rides, food trucks, and a car show with the added twist of community service opportunities. That’s right. This is no ordinary festival. It’s a festival that unites and gives back to the community.
Not only that, but MadFest has been organized entirely by Bob Jones High School and James Clemens High School students, showing off the abilities of young Madison residents.
“MadFest is anything but your average festival. For starters, it is ENTIRELY student led. Every little detail has been meticulously thought out by outstanding students at both Bob Jones and James Clemens. Also, the entire day will emphasize our slogan of “Twelve Schools, One City,”
Communications Director for the festival and a Bob Jones student, Simon Adkins, commented.
These students are on a mission to do good in the city of Madison and unite the two high schools, that are often seen as rivals.
“Madison City Schools is home to two of the highest performing high schools in our nation. With incredible academics and outstanding extracurricular opportunities, Madison City truly prepares students for the future. I’ve watched as both schools have made tremendous efforts to better our community and region. However, collaborative efforts between the two schools have often been difficult,” Festival Director, Bob Jones senior, and MVP’s Youth Volunteer of the Year Andrew Crocker said.
Crocker was driven to unite the two schools to do something great for the city.
“In August, I wanted to plan an opportunity for both schools to connect and make an impact on Madison,” said Crocker. “There’s such great potential in working together — combining the resources between both schools has such great potential in connecting our community. Madison is a place where we “love where we live,” and MadFest is an opportunity for students to come together and show our community how true this really is.”
“We want to show our community that we truly are better together. This ties in to why we decided to add a community service aspect,” said Adkins. “The idea to include service projects came from the simple desire to show the city of Madison what our students are all about. We plan to go to multiple locations in this area and give back to the community that has invested so much in us.”
MadFest has partnered with Madison Senior Center, Manna House, Enable Gardens, and Huntsville Botanical Gardens to connect Madison residents with volunteer opportunities. So, in addition to the festival fun, the event will also bring chances to get involved with your community.
The MadFest festival will take place Saturday, May 4 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Madison City Stadium. Visit www.madfest.info for more information.
