Music, food, and heritage begin Friday at Youngstown's Simply Slavic Festival

Two days of music, fun, and food get underway Friday in Downtown Youngstown. The Simply Slavic Heritage Festival will take place Friday and Saturday at the Youngstown Foundation Amphitheatre. The festival will feature traditions from various Eastern European countries.

Entertainment Schedule

Friday, June 13

• 5:00 PM: Od Srca Adult Tamburitzans
• 6:00 PM: Parade of Flags + Opening Ceremony
• 6:30 PM: Bob Kravos and The Boys in the Band
• 8:30 PM: Intermission
• 9:00 PM: The Youngstown’s Houseband
• 11:00 PM: Event Concludes

Saturday, June 14

• Noon: Gates Open
• Noon: Nocne Sove (Croatian)
• 12:15 PM: Parade of Flags + Blessing of the Food
• 1:00 PM: ZAPS (Ukrainian)
• 1:30 PM: Mikey Dee and George Batyi (Gypsy)
• 2:00 PM: Rex Taneri Orchestra (Slovenian)
• 3:15 PM: Living Traditions Folk Ensemble (Polish/Rusyn)
• 3:30 PM: Bob Buzecan from Chardon Polka Band (Polka)
• 4:05 PM: St. Nicholas Russian Youth Dance Group (Russian)
• 5:00 PM: Selo Croatian Ensemble (Croatian)
• 6:00 PM: Harmonia (Gypsy)
• 8:30 PM: The Chardon Polka Band
• 10:30 PM: Vatra Lighting Ceremony + Jam Session + Dance celebration
• 11:50 PM: Festival Closes
• Strolling Musicians

Food and Marketplace

The festival will offer a variety of food vendors, including:

• Babcia’s Lunchbox
• Balkan Bakery & Cafe
• Chuck’s Roasted Meats
• Crago’s Concessions
• Doughlicious Bakery
• Fredo’s Deli
• Hornyak’s Milkshakes
• J&J Concession
• Krakus Polish Deli & Bakery
• OH Donut Co.
• The Pierogi Lady
• Rimedio’s Bakery
• Sabi’s
• Steel City Chimneys (Friday only)
• Sweet Sips

The Marketplace Tent will feature vendors selling items such as:

• Amber jewelry from Poland
• Russian & Eastern European folk art
• Slavic Easter eggs and pysanky kits
• Slavic mugs, t-shirts, and jewelry
• Handfelted pierogi ornaments
• Jewelry, religious items, and Slovak/Czech ornaments
• Polish pottery
• Polka CDs and vintage recordings
• Flags, T-shirts, and more
• Polish apparel

The Heritage Tent will feature displays representing:

• Carpatho-Rusyn Territory
• Croatia
• Czechia
• Poland
• Serbia
• Slovakia
• Slovenia

Admission to the festival is $5. Children 12 and under are free. More information is available at SimplySlavic.org.