On Sat., May 17, 2014, the annual Ironfest was held at Ripken Stadium.

Ironfest is a yearly event that allows fans of the Ironbirds baseball team to purchase tickets ahead of time and enjoy a fun event with their families. However this year’s Ironfest also held two new events; a walk to benefit the Upper Chesapeake Health Foundation and a canned food drive for the Harford Community Action Council.

Ironfest began at 8 A.M. with the walk to benefit the health foundation and lasted until the walkers made four complete laps around the stadium. The walk was held in honor of Amanda Hichkad, a mother of three who suffers from metastatic cervical cancer.

After the walk one hundred vendors set up shop for the Out of the Park yard sale that took place on the Stadium’s newly paved parking lot and lasted until 1:30 P.M. Also, from 9:00 A.M. to 2:00 P.M. tickets for the upcoming Ironbirds games were being sold, as well as a family fun fest which included caricatures, face paintings and exhibits from Medieval Times and Ripley’s Believe it or Not.

Susan Marco, a patron of the event says that, “I take my family to Ironfest every year and it’s always a good time. We are big Ironbirds fans and, with the inclusion of the walk and the food drive, I think that this year’s is one of the best.”

Overall Ironfest was a great day, not just for the fans but the people who will benefit from the food drive and the large sum of money raised from the walk. Fans should definitely set their expectations high for next years Ironfest.