KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. – Organizers of the Greater Klamath CityFest are saying the day was a success.

“Our goal was to reflect Jesus’ love to the community and we engaged thousands of people,” said CityFest co-chairman Doug Kirby. “Everything, except food, was free, and we also saw restaurants offering specials to make food more affordable.”

He noted that some of the popular activities were the bounce houses, mechanical bull and horse rides.


“Kids were grinning from ear-to-ear,” he said. “One nine-year-old girl told me the horses were her favorite. ‘They were awesome!’ she said.”

Smiles, laughter and quality family time spread throughout the downtown area from 2 to 8:30 p.m. May 30. The family fun zone ran from 2 to 6 p.m. with baptisms, worship music and the Ryan Stevenson concert at Veterans Park from 6 to 8:30 p.m.

“There was a time when the church was the center of the community, where people gathered and worked together,” said CityFest co-chairman Randy Shaw. “Evangelism is part of the CityFest experience and we were pleased to see 81 people baptized at Veterans Park. Another 24 baptisms happened at the jail, with seven new believers and 18 being recommitted to Christ. There were 29 people who attended the jail services.”

Kirby and Shaw said the CityFest team will meet in the near future to discuss strengths, weaknesses and opportunities, while considering what a future event might look like.

They also indicated that Greater Klamath CityFest was only possible because of the generous gifts of local individuals and businesses.