Pride of Hoyt Days celebrates 40 years
Wed, 08/19/2026 - 13:49
holtonadmin
Forty years ago, in 1986, the southern Jackson County community of Hoyt celebrated the town’s centennial with a festival and a fund-raiser for construction of a new community building.
The festival was such a hit that the next year, Hoyt residents started a new, annual event known as Pride of Hoyt Days, and every year since then — save 2020, when the event was canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic — the town has held its annual celebration of all things Hoyt, mainly in the city park.
This year’s event should be no exception, with a parade, silent auction, art and quilt show, softball tournament, arts and crafts vendors, a community fried chicken dinner and a garden tractor pull, all to be held Saturday, Aug. 29 at the city park, followed by a community-wide church service on Sunday morning, Aug. 30 at the community building, which is located in the park.
Longtime Hoyt residents Kenny and Kellie Bryan will serve as grand marshals of this year’s Pride of Hoyt parade, starting at 4 p.m., according to Jessica Bryan of the Pride of Hoyt Days committee.
“Kellie retired after an incredible 32 years with the Royal Valley school district, where she was a much-loved bus driver, forming special connections with many Royal Valley students and families,” Jessica Bryan said. “Through the years, she has also volunteered her time around town, helping keep Hoyt looking beautiful.
“Kenny has given countless hours to the community,” she added. “During his time with the Royal Valley Rec Club, he built the concession stand and coached local youth for many years. As the City of Hoyt maintenance manager, he is truly one of the community’s go-to guys and is always willing to lend a hand.”
One feature of past Pride of Hoyt events, the sand volleyball tournament, will not be held this year due to a lack of participation in recent years, it was reported.
Saturday’s events begin with a community breakfast and a silent auction, both starting at 7 a.m. in the community building. Registration for the annual “Color Run” also begins at 7 a.m. with the race to start at 7:30 a.m.; participants need only show up for the event and are encouraged to wear a white shirt and old clothes.
A softball tournament sponsored by the Royal Valley Rec Association will begin at 8 a.m. at the park’s softball field, and full teams looking to compete are asked to call or text Ashley Tyler at (785) 554-9924 or email royalvalleyrec337@gmail.com for more information. There is a $150 registration fee per team.
A handful of activities start at 9 a.m. in the park, including a car show where participants can “just show up,” vendors selling food, crafts and products in the old 4-H barn, Jay Diamond providing music at the park gazebo and an art show and quilt display in the community building. Inflatables and a petting zoo will be available for kids in the park from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., it was reported.
A cornhole (bean bag toss) tournament will begin at 10 a.m. in the park, and there is a $20 registration fee for each two-person team. Those interested in participating are encouraged to sign up by Sunday, Aug. 23 by contacting Jason Klotz at (785) 845-8497.
Editor’s note: This article corrects a name error in the Aug. 19 print version of The Recorder. A corrected version also appears in the “E-Edition” version of the Aug. 19 issue. The Recorder apologizes for the error.
For more on this and other stories, please log in to your holtonrecorder.net account and select “Aug. 19, 2026” under “E-Editions.”
