By KARI BLURTON
Hays Post

The 42 annual Volga-German Society’s Oktoberfest Friday at Frontier Park will kick off with a new tradition this year — the ringing of the bells.

Oktoberfest co-coordinator Janel Moore said an official “Oktoberfest Big Bell” has been purchased and will be placed on Oktoberfest stage.

The ringing of the big bell is a signal for participants to ring smaller bells so no one misses out on the tapping of the keg, the traditional start of Oktoberfest at 11:30 a.m., and also will serve to signal the start of other planned events and performances.

Moore said this year’s Oktoberfest includes many Volga-German traditions such as a Grand March, an old Volga-German wedding tradition that ended with wedding guests pinning money on a bride. And, of course, plenty of polka — “The music of our people,” Moore said.

Moore said keeping the Volga-German traditions is important, something her father Larry Werth taught her and her brother, Oktoberfest’s other coordinator, Nick Werth well. Larry Werth was one of the founders of Oktoberfest.

“My dad’s generation, the ones who started Oktoberfest, they are all passing and taking a lot of interesting culture with them,” Moore said. “We’re losing our language — you don’t hear it as much anymore — in older people, yes, but it won’t be around much longer. We need to make sure our children … realize the impact the Volga-Germans played in development of the United States.”

To help preserve that history, “Honor Our Heritage” is  scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Friday at the park.

Ellis County Historical Society Executive Director Donald Westfall said the event draws kids, families and school groups from across the region because it is fun and educational.

“What we do is present primarily early history of Ellis County, with and emphasis on Volga-German history but not strictly because (the event) deals with the entire history and culture of our county,” he said.

Westfall said historical figures will be portrayed including Abraham Lincoln, General Custer, a traditional Volga-German farmer and Catherine the Great — the Russian Empress who invited the Volga-Germans to Russia in 1862 before they immigrated to the United States, where many settled in Ellis County.

For a complete list of events, go HERE.