(6/28) Thurmont commissioners decided by consensus, at their June 23 meeting, that Catoctin Colorfest 2020, one of the community's most popular and heavily attended annual events, is now officially canceled.

Colorfest was slated to have occurred on October 10, and features street vendors, food, and yard sales, and can attract as many as 100,000 attendees or more. However, like so many large annual events, communities are faced with making decisions regarding holding such events while COVID still possesses a threat to public health.

The possibility, or likelihood, that Catoctin Colorfest 2020 was to be canceled was discussed at the commissioners' June 16 meeting. A decision was then made to render a final call on July 1. However, the board subsequently decided to make their final decision at the June 23 meeting.

Commissioner Martin Burns was ready to cancel the event at the June 16 meeting, stating, "I've already said, I'll cancel it right now … I'd like to be able do it (proceed with the event) if we thought it could be successful, but I don't think it's going to be."

Mayor John Kinnaird noted along with the consensus to ditch this year's Colorfest, the town had received a letter from Catoctin Colorfest, Inc. stating that Catoctin Colorfest, Inc., along with the Guardian Hose Company, and the Thurmont Ambulance Company "will not be participating (in this year's Colorfesr) … We are truly concerned for the health, well-being, and safety of everyone who is involved and participating in this event, as well as the residents of our community, due to the pandemic we are experiencing."

Following the reading of the letter, Burns expressed that he was not pleased with not having rendered a decision at the June 16 meeting, stating, "If you (Catoctin Colorfest, Inc.) had just come up and said, 'Hey, we're very concerned. We'd like to cancel'… we'd have just followed suit that night and been done with it, and not wasted all this effort."

On behalf of the board, Kinnaird read a statement regarding the board's decision, noting that the board of commissioners must protect, not just the residents of Thurmont, but all those who visit Thurmont.

"Given the severity of the pandemic," he stated, the board determined that it is unsafe to proceed with the festival, as a matter of public health and safety.

Carol Robertson, president of Catoctin Colorfest, told the News-Journal that Colorfest was established 57 years ago as a "nature walk, and evolved into one of the largest arts and crafts shows."

She also noted, "We have never canceled before," she said. "I work on this event all year, and a great deal of preparation goes into it, but due to the current situation and the uncertainty of where we might be with this in October, a decision had to be made now, rather than later."

In closing, the mayor said, "This has been a difficult decision," noting that all the local non-profit organizations rely on Colorfest as their largest fund-raising event each year.