WHEELERSBURG- The Wheelersburg community is rallying their members to celebrate their bicentennial in a big way through a newly formed 501©3 non-profit, Wheelersburg Community Partnership.

The group originally set out to create a tax-exempt organization that can make improvements to Wheelersburg through placemaking and beautification, seasonal offerings, and events, but were quickly tasked with additional duties by officials.

“We are a newly formed group in Wheelersburg and our goal is to help with beautification projects and event planning in our community,” executive co-chair Karen Mershon said. “We are a group of five board members and 15 who have been consistently involved. It’s a pretty good group.”

Upon formation, members attended a Porter Township Trustee meeting and the officials suggested they consider taking on the celebrations surrounding the bicentennial.

According to Mershon, the group didn’t hesitate, and they’ve pulled together one massive celebration in only three months that isn’t only in the Porter Township Park, but has outgrown to fill the flea market area, Pioneer Village, and Litteral House.

“This is for our bicentennial, but it is also the first time our group has planned an event, and we are excited,” Mershon said. “We started this as a community celebration to let the community know about our new non-profit. I went to a trustee meeting to talk about better Christmas lights, and they brought up the bicentennial. This was the end of April, so we didn’t even begin until the second week of May.”

The event is being called the Wheelersburg Community Celebration and will offer a multitude of features including carnival games hosted by community organizations, churches, and businesses; music at the gazebo, alongside a tent for shade and a reminder for people to bring lawn chairs; touch a truck will highlight EMS vehicles from fire and medical; 12 food trucks and over 40 vendors; the planting of a time capsule; appearances by Miss Wheelersburg and Miss Sesquicentennial Jeri Way; an advice booth filled with men called “old coots,” raffles and prizes; and historical displays in Pioneer Village and the Litteral House.

“I’m excited. I think our group is very excited to get the event underway and done. The hope is that more community members want to join our efforts, maybe someone with gardening experience will want to plant some flowers,” Mershon said. “Everyone has a purpose and we’re hoping to pull into those strengths and make people part of the community.”

Following the event, the group plans to meet again with more community members with the goal of pulling together a plan to follow as they navigate their improvements.

“We want to find out what people want to see in Wheelersburg in five years and then build our plans around those concepts,” Mershon said. “We want to know what projects people want, their thoughts on events, and then focus on different areas.”

The Wheelersburg Community Celebration is set for Saturday, August 3 between noon and 6 p.m. at Porter Township Park, 7835 Ohio River Road. Stay updated on future offerings, calls to action, and resources within the Wheelersburg community by following the Wheelersburg Community Partnership on Facebook.