The ringing of the ceremonial bell at the Fountain Park kicked off WAMBO 27 this evening in Wallaceburg.
Bill Wolsing, chair of the event, along with members of the Gordon family were on hand to ring the bell 27 times to officially open the annual event.
Darlene Gordon said she knows her late husband Chip was looking down on them once again this year.
“We’ve got the perfect weather coming and it’s going to be a good time, everybody play safe,” she said. “If you look at these clouds tonight, he is smiling. The sun is shining down and he is smiling at everybody.”
Chip Gordon was the long-time chair of WAMBO and was one of the founding members of Wallaceburg’s annual event.
Darlene had kind words for the chair of WAMBO, as Wolsing was like Chip’s second son.
“He chose Bill because he knew Bill would lead it good after he left,” she said.
Darlene added: “It’s a big event for our family and we’ll be down for every day of it.
The K of C Chicken dinner drew a big crowd, as usual, by the Wallaceburg Library as Jeff Vercauteren and Tim Nishimura serenaded the crowd with acoustic music.
The Terry Glover Memorial Car Cruise got started Friday evening at 7 p.m. and wound through downtown Wallaceburg before heading towards Dresden.
The refreshment tent also opened up and The Sterling Blues Band graced the WAMBO stage as the opening musical entertainment.
WAMBO 27 kicks into full gear on Saturday, here is the full event schedule.
Check out our photos from the evening:
Opening Ceremony – Photos by Brian Armitage
K of C Chicken Dinner
Terry Glover Memorial Car Cruise
Sterling Blues Band
– With files from Jay Smith