Four-year-old Jeffy Gomez of Arvada was one tuckered-out reveler at Sunday’s conclusion of the People’s Fair in downtown Denver.
He nearly nodded off between bites of a corn dog, despite the colorful feather plumes, pounding drums and spirited dancing of the Grupo Huitzilopochtli Danza Azteca nearby.
“He won’t leave until he finishes his corn dog,” said Jeffy’s mother, Estrella, as she jostled her sleepy-eyed little one. “We might be here awhile.”
The 40th-anniversary People’s Fair at Civic Center lived up to its name, full of culture, pageantry, food and the music of 130 bands.
The event begun as a Capitol Hill street party in 1971 has matured into the unofficial kickoff to the summer festival season.
Attendance figures aren’t kept for the free event, but the turnout seemed way up this year, said Roger Armstrong, president of the 1,000-member Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods, which puts on the People’s Fair.
“I credit the crowd to a wet May and people wanting to get outside and have some fun,” he said.
The fair draws all kinds of people to all kinds of events, with vendors selling such diverse items and services as Tibetan art, Oregon jerky, massages, acupuncture, Rocky Mountain oysters and giant turkey legs.
Besides bringing people together downtown for a weekend, it helps people all year long. The People’s Fair has raised more than $1 million for local causes.
“This is one of my favorite festivals because it doesn’t celebrate just one thing,” said Al Crittendon as he herded three grandchildren away from the Eurobungy Colorado ring, where kids soared above the park tethered by elastic cords. “Denver is a lot of things, not just one, and it’s good to have a festival that says: ‘Hey, come on down. This is for everybody.’ “
Joey Bunch: 303-954-1174 or jbunch@denverpost.com
