Lehigh Valley Hospital -- Muhlenberg Summer Festival Celebrates 46 years

Festival Hours:

Aug. 15, 16, and 17 -- 5 - 10:30 p.m.

Aug. 18 -- Noon - 10:30 p.m.

Entertainment Lineup:

Wednesday, Aug. 15

• 5 p.m. Festival Opens
• 5 - 9 p.m. One-price ride tickets ($15)
• 6:30 p.m. Opening Ceremony
  
• 7 - 10 p.m. King Henry and the Showmen

Thursday, Aug. 16

• 7 - 10 p.m. The Twitty Fever Band

Friday, Aug. 17

• 7 - 10 p.m. The Mudflaps

Saturday, Aug. 18

• Noon - 4 p.m. One-price ride tickets ($15)
• 7 - 10 p.m. Jess Wade Gang
• 10 p.m. $1,000 Cash Raffle

Bethlehem, Pa. (Aug. 13, 2007) -- Celebrating Lehigh Valley Hospital - Muhlenberg's (LVH - Muhlenberg) 46th anniversary, the Muhlenberg Summer Festival continues its tradition of family fun beginning on Wednesday, Aug. 15 through Saturday, Aug. 18, at the hospital campus on Schoenersville Road in Bethlehem.

One of the hospital's largest fund raisers, the festival has raised nearly $2 million dollars during its long history to support services that LVH - Muhlenberg provides for the community. The very first festival was held in 1959, even before ground was broken for what was to become the Muhlenberg Medical Center. The first festival raised $4,400, compared to $72,500 raised last year. The proceeds from last year's festival were used to purchase a surgical tray used to remove kidney stones, two blanket warmers, x-ray equipment, IV pumps, an ultrasound machine, gynecological equipment and a stretcher for the emergency department.

Each night of the four-day festival will include special activities for children in "Kiddie Land," such as grab bags, face painting, chip and putt, tie-dye shirts, plus plenty of food, crafts, and free entertainment for patrons of all ages. Wednesday's opening-night activities will include one-price ride tickets of $15 from 5-9 p.m., and the popular sounds of King Henry and the Showmen. Closing ceremonies on Saturday also will feature one-price ride tickets of $15 from noon-4 p.m. The annual cash raffle will be held at the end of the night and performances by the Jesse Wade Gang will start mid-afternoon.

The free admission, nightly entertainment, amusement rides, ethnic and American foods and approximately 85 arts and craft exhibitors make this event a great place to take the entire family. The festival also boasts one of the area's largest juried craft shows. Artisans and craftspeople from as far away as Michigan join local exhibitors, offering hundreds of hand-crafted items ranging from oil and watercolor paintings to wood carvings and paper jewelry. Crafters and their creations are carefully screened and selected based on specific criteria. Each item must be handmade, contributing a unique quality to the array of crafts and artistic renderings presented at the festival.

Each year, more than 300 dedicated hospital volunteers, auxiliary members and employees give their time to create an event that is a treat for the whole family. We combine free nightly entertainment, a variety of festival foods, a wide selection of amusement rides for children of all ages, and a long-standing tradition of beautiful, unique crafts and artwork.

Based in Allentown and Bethlehem, Pa., Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network comprises Lehigh Valley Hospital - Cedar Crest & I-78, Lehigh Valley Hospital - 17th & Chew, Lehigh Valley Hospital - Muhlenberg and Lehigh Valley Health Services, which includes home health, hospice, pharmacy and health management. Advanced regional resources at these non-profit hospitals include a Level I Trauma Center with added pediatric qualifications, a Primary Stroke Center as well as a regional Burn Center, kidney and pancreas transplant, perinatal/neonatal, cardiac, cancer care, and neurology and complex neurosurgery capabilities. LVHHN hospitals are designated national Magnet hospitals for excellence in nursing. LVH is one of Pennsylvania's largest teaching hospitals and is a major teaching campus of Penn State's College of Medicine.

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