Kissel Amusement Co. Indoor Spring Festival at Harvest Ridge
The second annual Indoor Spring Festival will take place at Harvest Ridge Event Center March 28-30, and with the Kissel family will come plenty of rides for kids of all ages, fair food and fun.
All the spinning rides, flashing lights and excitement of the Holmes County Fair amusement portion will roll into Holmes County soon, and fans of rides won’t have to wait until this summer to enjoy the thrills of Kissel Amusement Co.
The second annual Indoor Spring Festival will take place at Harvest Ridge Event Center March 28-30, and with the Kissel family will come plenty of rides for kids of all ages, fair food and fun.
Last spring saw Kissel Amusement Co. introduce its Expo Wheel, a 75-foot Ferris wheel that it introduced into its family of rides. While ugly weather outside limited the wheel’s effectiveness, patrons to this event won’t have to worry about nasty weather conditions because all the rides will be inside and under roof.
“We really had a nice turnout and had a lot of fun last year, so we are excited to bring back Kissel Amusement again this spring,” said Pat Martin, Harvest Ridge office manager. “That all of the rides will be inside is also something nice because we won’t have to worry about weather ruining our fun.”
While the Expo Ferris wheel won’t make an appearance this year, there will be plenty of other rides including Sizzler, swings, berries, Gator, Pirates’ Revenge, a slide and more.
“We will have plenty of rides of all kinds,” Kissel said.
In creating this debut event, the Kissels have created a family-friendly carnival that will include three days that are open to the general public: Friday, March 28 from 6-10 p.m.; Saturday, March 29 from noon to 10 p.m.; and Sunday, March 30 from noon to 6 p.m.
For $15 per person, families can come to the carnival and get unlimited rides all day long, hopping from one ride to the next with no tickets needed, just a wrist band.
In addition, visitors can enjoy games and food, which are not a part of the $15 value, while those under age 2 are free. Parent assist tickets may be purchased for $12 for parents intending to accompany their children on the rides. The food trailers will bring many of the fair favorites and will be outside the expo center.
“We wanted to make riding available for families, and they can have unlimited rides for as long as they are there,” Kissel said. “We made this very family-friendly.”
Kissel said they adore coming to Holmes County because of the way they are treated, connecting with down-to-earth people who are easy to get along with and work with.
Martin said both Harvest Ridge and the Holmes County Fair’s board are honored the Kissel family has chosen Holmes County as the place to bring the spring fun to the people.
One connection Kissel Amusement Co. has with a growing number of businesses in Holmes County is it is family-owned and operated and has been for quite some time.
The company has been a family business for four generations, beginning way back in 1932 when Randy Kissel’s grandfather and his grandfather’s brother started the company. Kissel himself is third generation, and his four sons are the fourth generation in the family business.
Because of that commitment to family values, the Kissels understand how important being together as family is, especially to Holmes County, where family is such an integral part of life.
“That’s a big part of who we are as a company,” Kissel said. “We value that deeply. We love Holmes County, Harvest Ridge and the people of Holmes County and work so well together. It’s such a big part of who we are, and we know that family is also important to the people of Holmes County, which is another reason we love coming there.”
Kissel said he looked up the statistics on family-owned businesses, and fourth-generation family companies are less than 2% of companies worldwide.
The Kissel family welcomes Holmes County’s families and anyone who loves the carnival atmosphere to join them on this special weekend.
To learn more about Kissel Amusement Co., visit www.kisselamusement.com.