42nd Annual Tennessee Iris Festival: The Iris Blooms Again 2022 Schedule of Events
Saturday, April 30th
TN Iris Festival Yard Sale: All Day. Maps at Dresden City Hall on April 28. Spend your day exploring hidden treasures and great bargains across the city of Dresden. Bring your friends and enjoy being out and about town when it’s Iris Time in Tennessee!
Pet Show: 4 p.m. at Wilson Park. Free to register. Bring your furry (and not furry!) friends and let the cutest pets win! We will start accepting entries at 4 p.m. at Dresden City Park. Categories will include Cutest Dog, Cutest Cat, and Most Original. All pets are accepted! Sponsors are Dresden High School Ag Department.
Fast & Furious Power Wheels in the Park: 5 p.m. at Wilson Park. Free. Children up to 7 years old. Chairperson: First Community Bank, 731-364-0000. Bring your battery-powered toy for a fun drag racing and obstacle course experience. One Power Wheel will be given away.
Opening Ceremonies: 6 p.m. at Wilson Park. Free food and firework extravaganza. Live music featuring Leavin’ Sunday. Rain location – McWherter Civic Center. Contact TN Iris Festival Executive Board 731-364-2270. This is an event your whole family is sure to enjoy! Bring your lawn chair.
Sunday, May 1st
Cemetery Walk: 4:30-6:30 p.m. at Sunset Cemetery. Free admission. Chairpersons: Bobby Goode 731-364-5391 & Tommy Moore, 731-364-2915. The Iris Festival 2022 Cemetery Walk is an event you do not want to miss! Actors will portray individuals from our community and their legacies. Guides will carry groups through the Cemetery to be introduced to these characters from our history
Monday, May 2nd
Prayer Breakfast: 7 a.m. at the Dresden First Baptist Church Family Life Center fellowship hall. Tickets are $5 at the door. Dignitaries, city, county, and state officials will be recognized.
Tuesday, May 3rd
Children’s Fun Bingo: 6-7 p.m. at the Dresden Elementary School. Free with prizes. Children up to 12 years old. Chairperson: DES Principal Melanie Needham, 731-364-3401. Please stay with your children while they play or make plans to pick them up at DES no later than 7 p.m.
Fun Bingo: 7-8:30 p.m. at Dresden Middle School gymnasium. Free with prizes. Must be 16 to enter. Chairperson: First Community Bank, 731-364-0000. This is one of the most popular events of the week and offers many opportunities to win. The game itself is suspenseful and exciting, and the fun is topped by the great prizes you may win.
Wednesday, May 4th
Baking Contest: 8-10 a.m. at the McWherter Civic Center. Judging Begins at 10 a.m. No Entry Fee. Chairperson: Gail Rogers, 731-364-5678 Think you’re a good cook? Enter your prize-winning recipe, and let the judges decide! Bring your baked dishes to the McWherter Civic Center 8-10 a.m.
Senior Citizens Luncheon: 12 noon at the McWherter Civic Center. Potluck. Free admission. Chairperson: Gail Rogers, 731-364-5678. Bring a dish and enjoy a free meal and the fellowship. Door prizes will also be given.
Pancake Supper: 5-6:45 p.m. at the Dresden First Baptist Church Family Life Center. Tickets are $5. Chairperson: Martha Hopper, John Johnson, and Christina Oliver, Kelley and Shelia Swearingen – First Baptist Church, 731-364-2212. Served by the Men’s Ministry and Women on Mission before the community-wide church service. Tickets may be purchased at the door or in advance by contacting the church office. All proceeds will be given to Santa’s Helpers of Dresden.
Community–Wide Gospel Singing: 7 p.m. at the Dresden First Baptist Church. Featuring the Gold City Quartet. Advanced tickets required. Chairperson: Tommy Moore, 731-364-2915. Gold City Quartet’s name is synonymous with setting the standard for male quartets since their inception in 1980. There’s only one Gold City. GOLD CITY has numerous number one songs, fan and industry awards, and prestigious honors. They are a Gadsden, Alabama-based group that remains down-to-earth, grounded in their southern roots, and committed to continuing their mission of delivering power-packed four-part harmonies and singing songs that are meaningful, entertaining, inspiring, and uplifting. Radio continues to embrace this quartet, honoring them with number one songs in each of the last four decades, their most recent being “Peter James and John” in 2012. With an energetic vocal lineup
and fresh musical arrangements of dynamic songs, you can expect many more years of success for this great group.
Now, in nearly 42 years of ministry, Daniel Riley, baritone, has assumed the management role and leads the group onward into the future. He provides a smooth baritone vocal that blends perfectly with the other voices in the group, but also has the versatility to step out for a solo with power and soul.
Chris West anchors the group with his rich, deep, and clear bass voice. Lead vocalist Bruce Taliaferro follows a long list of dynamic lead vocalist and takes a back seat to no one. Bruce has quickly gained fans with his commanding voice and musical delivery as well as his wonderful personality. Tenor Thomas Nalley puts the top on the sound with his high clear tenor voice and sincere delivery of each song.
Each member of Gold City is talented and dedicated to sharing the good news of the gospel through songs with encouraging and challenging lyrics, presented in an exciting performance on stage.
Thursday, May 5th
Community Health Fair: 9 a.m.-noon. Weakley County Court House. Free health screenings. *Chairpersons: Amie Whittle, 731-693-0606. Local health care providers will give free health screenings and resource education.
Rotary Club Golf Tournament: 9 a.m. shotgun start. Persimmon Hills Golf Course. Lunch at 11:30 a.m. Advanced registration required. Chairperson: Dresden Rotary Club, Samantha Hutcherson, 760-574-4058. Sign your team up now for the Dresden Rotary Club Iris Festival Golf Tournament. The entry fee for a 3-person scramble team is just
$150, which includes greens fees, cart, cookout lunch, $10,000 Hole-in-One Prize, Longest Drive & Closest to the Pin Prizes, door prizes, goodie bags, and on-course refreshments. Check in and cookout lunch begins at 8 a.m., with the Shotgun Start at 9 a.m. The Dresden Rotary Club uses proceeds from this tournament to help feed over 300 children at risk of hunger through its support of the Weakley County Backpack Program. Dresden Rotary also provides scholarships, supports youth sports and leadership programs, and addresses other needs in the community.
Story Time at Ned R. McWherter Library: 5 p.m. Free. Chairperson: Ned R. McWherter Library, 731-364-2678.
Located on Linden Street.
Dresden High School Choral Concert: 6 p.m. at the Dresden Farmers Market. Free. Chairperson: Jacob Abbott, Dresden High School.
Friday, May 6th
Horticulture Show: Entries 7-9:30 a.m., judging at 9:45 a.m.; public viewing 1-4 p.m. At Farm Bureau on Morrow Street. No entry fee. Chairperson: Shirley Chappell, 731-456-2213 or 731-514-7306. Bring your favorite plants, flowers, and mixed arrangements. Entries will be taken from 7:30 – 9:30 a.m. There will also be a “Best of Show Iris”
award given this year. Entries and awards must be picked up by 4 p.m.
Corner Café: 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. at Dresden First Baptist Church. Tickets are $10 at the door. Hosted by the Dresden First United Methodist Church. Chairperson: Jan Everett, 731-364-5293 (home), 731-364-2419 (church). Corner Café is the place to be on Friday for lunch! A festival favorite, everyone enjoys this wonderful luncheon that is prepared by the United Methodist Women.
Music Fest: 6 p.m. at Dresden Farmers Market. Food trucks. Music by Dresden High School Pep Band and Kimberlie Helton Band. Chairperson: TN Iris Festival Executive Board, 731-364-2270. Festivities begin at the Dresden Farmers Market and will feature food trucks and live music from the Dresden High School Pep Band and the Kimberlie Helton Band.
Car Cruise-In: 6 p.m. at the Dresden Farmers Market. Contact Delbert Rainey at 364-2314 to register. Bring your cars and cruise-in.
Elks Lodge BBQ Cookoff: Entries due by 7:30 p.m. at Dresden Farmers Market. Contact Russ Finney for more information at 731-504-8022. Join us for a festival favorite featuring some of the best cooks that West Tennessee has to offer! Entry Fee is $40 per category or $150 for all. Categories include chicken, pork ribs, Boston butt and BBQ sauce. For registration forms and specific contest information, call Finney or visit the Tennessee Iris Festival Facebook page.
Saturday, May 7th
5K Race, 2-Mile Walk, 1-Mile Kids Fun Run, .25 Tot Run: Races begin at Corner of Main and Poplar Streets. 8 a.m. start for 5k and 2 mile. 7:30 a.m. for kids run; immediately after for tot run. Entry fees on race day; trophies and medallions awarded. Chairpersons: Todd Maxey, 731-364-6786 or 731-514-6401 and Dusty Gibson, irun4tn@yahoo.com. The first 75 entries, 5K only, will receive a grab bag. 5K Race is $20; 2 mile walk $10; 1 Mile Fun Run for kids ages 5-12 years $10; and 5 and under Tot Run $8 immediately following the 5K.
Tennessee Iris Festival Parade: 10 a.m. begins at Dresden Elementary School continuing to Locust Street; Cedar Street; Evergreen Street; ending at McWherter Civic Center. Advanced registration is required by Friday, May 3. Chairpersons: Emily Vickers, Simmons Bank, 731-587-9561. Find your favorite spot along the parade route to see this year’s entries and our wonderful dignitaries, royalties, and honored guests as they parade through Dresden. Entry forms available at Simmons Bank in Dresden, Dresden City Hall, and at www.tennesseeirisfestival.net.
McWherter Governor’s Luncheon at McWherter Civic Center: Advance ticket required $15. Following end of parade. Gather at the McWherter Civic Center to honor the outstanding dignitaries who make a daily impact on Dresden’s legacy of fostering community spirit, and to recognize and thank those who served to make the week a success.
