Francis Fest thrives in sunny weather | News, Sports, Jobs

Beginning at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, there was a well-attended bi-lingual outdoor mass to which all were welcome, followed by a four-hour block party filled with homemade food, childrens’ games, Loteria (a Mexican game similar to Bingo) and entertainment on the main stage. Father Alan Dietzenbach, the head pastor at the parish, also read of winners of various raffle items.

The experience brought together the Catholic community in Marshalltown, and associate pastor Fr. Kyle Tietz said it was a big success.

“It’s been a great day, blessed with good weather here and a great turnout,” Tietz said. “Great with food, a great mass outside and now some entertainment to round out the evening. In Spanish they say convivio. In English, we have conviviality, but we don’t use it that much. It means ‘sharing life together.’ That’s what we’re doing today, and I think it’s been a great opportunity to do that.”

Having been with St. Francis for nearly a year, Tietz said in his capacity he set out to help the parish’s Hispanic Minister Sister Chris Feagan in any way he could as they planned the event.

St. Francis of Assisi Parish associate pastor Father Kyle Tietz does fire juggling as part of the entertainment for Sunday afternoon’s Francis Fest. The day began with outdoor mass at 10:30 a.m. followed by a festival from noon-4 p.m., which included food, children’s games and Loteria — a Mexican game similar to Bingo.

Feagan said it was a huge win for the church and for the community – mentioning that it had gotten bigger than they expected given the turnout.

“It’s a huge success,” Feagan said. “The way the community comes together, so many people have stayed. They came for mass at 10:30 and they’re still here. We’ve just got people who are willing to help. There were about 40 people out here setting up the stage, carrying chairs and setting up tables.”

Volunteers and various businesses around Marshalltown donated to help provide St. Francis with food and water for the afternoon, with Feagan mentioning donations from Burger King, Wal-Mart, Kwik Star, JBS and Iowa Premium Beef, specifically. There was also a large selection of Mexican and Salvadoran foods, including a crowd favorite in pupusas.

It was such a big success in the food area that there were long lines after 3 p.m., with people coming back for seconds and making their first trip over three hours into the festival.

Feagan said the planning committee already knows it will need more grills ahead of next year’s event.

Live music and entertainment, fresh food and a bake sale was part of St. Fancis Fest held on Sunday afternoon.

“We got three new grills and four new canopies for this year,” Feagan said. “We ran out of pork burgers. We ran out of Blizzards. I think we have more people this year than last year. I think everybody is really, really happy – I’ve only heard good comments.”

She added that more components of the event are being taken over by those who volunteer to run said events, such as the Loteria table. Feagan said they offered to run the table and pick up the prizes next year, which she said not only shows the commitment people have to Francis Fest but that people are taking ownership of it, which will hopefully only build the festival in the coming years.

Notable performances on the stage included a run of tricks performed by Tietz, which included fire juggling, a skill he was happy to work into the event after learning how to perform it at a young age. It was a hit with the youth in attendance.

“I started juggling when I was in elementary school. I thought it was the coolest thing we did in gym class,” Tietz said. “I could have done it last year, but I had to build the hype and do it this year. It was fun to share those talents.”