Springfield Area Highland Games
The Springfield Area Highland Games and Celtic Festival is an event of the St. Andrew's Society of Central Illinois. The Society is a 501(c)3 organization dedicated to keeping Celtic traditions alive. Our membership works tirelessly to teach our culture to future generations and to educate the community about all things Celtic. The Springfield Area Highland Games is just one way we do that.
The Springfield Area Highland Games and Celtic Festival had its humble beginning at Knight's Action Park sixteen years ago, when members of the St. Andrew's Society saw an opportunity to bring a traditional Highland event to Central Illinois. Thanks to the hard work of those original organizers, the event quickly outgrew the park and was moved to the Illinois State Fairgrounds were it was held for several years. Last year the Springfield Area Highland Games moved to the nearby city of Chatham, at the Chatham Community Park, where it is held today. The Games features competitions for Highland dancers, individual pipers and drummers, bagpipe bands, and athletes. Over the years, the competition has grown from just five bagpipe bands to as many as 18; from just 30 dancers to 90; and from only 10 athletes to almost 100. Competitors come from across the mid-west and from all corners of the country.
In addition to competitive events, the festival features many demonstrations throughout the day. Rugby matches, storytelling, music, animal exhibits, a large children's area, and much, much more. There are also several merchandise and food vendors, many of which will be showcasing Scottish and Irish goods.Each year, some of the funds raised from the Springfield Highland Games and Celtic Festival are returned to the community. Some of the past donation recipients include: American Red Cross, the boys and Girls Clubs, Sojourn House, Big Brother Big Sister, Boy Scouts of America, SPARC, and the Ronald McDonald House. For the past nine years, the primary charity has been the Ronald McDonald House, whose mission is to serve families during the hospitalization of seriously ill children. To date, the Games has contributed $9,000 to the Ronald McDonald House.
Our supporters are from both the public and private sectors. The Illinois Arts Council, Capitol Radio Group, Gold's Gym, Global Printing & Graphics, Matthews Construction, and other businesses have been annual supporters through dollars and media outreach. Countless volunteers from the community come together on the day of the event to work together to create a world-class Games. The event is also very strongly supported by the St. Andrew's Society of Central Illinois membership, who generously give their time and money to help make this event successful each year.