By Auggie Brown
Glasgow News 1
“My uncle…Charles “Big Game” Hunter, basketball legend in the area, had an old timers basketball game. It was an annual game, and then some local residents started the reunion part of it.” said Barrett Wright, chairman of the Old Timers Reunion.
The Old Timers Festival is returning to Glasgow on Saturday, Sept. 5, bringing a full day of food, music, games and community recognition to Luska J. Twyman Park.
The festival will run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the park, located at 301 Bunche Avenue, and is designed to welcome people of all ages.
This year marks the sixth annual edition of the new Old Timers Festival under the leadership of the Old Timers Reunion organization, often called OTR.
The current festival builds on an Old Timers Reunion that began more than 50 years ago, according to Wright.
The tradition started as a basketball game created by Charles “Big Game” Hunter and was later expanded into a larger reunion effort spearheaded by Pete Bradley.
The original Old Timers Reunion was held at Houchens Park and typically took place around Labor Day.
Most of the early participants were from the Bunche area of Glasgow, reflecting deep ties to the local African American community.
Wright said the reunion slowly faded out in the 1990s as interest from younger people decreased and Houchens Park fell into disrepair.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, community members including Wright, Nathan Allen and Bernard Francis formed a steering committee to bring the Old Timers tradition back.
Their group is formally known as Old Timers Reunion, but they changed the name of the gathering to the Old Timers Festival after last year to make it more inclusive and inviting to all ages.
The revived event is now held at Luska J. Twyman Park, named for Glasgow’s first African American mayor.
Wright said Twyman brought a strong sense of pride to the African American community, and the park’s location in the Bunche neighborhood made it a natural home for the new festival.
Wright and other OTR leaders are also working to update Twyman Park itself and hope to see the bridge at the park widened for safety reasons.
This year’s Old Timers Festival will feature food from Buck’s Food Truck and DeWalt & Trevent Soulful Expressions.
DJ Reezy is scheduled to provide music throughout the day.
Visitors can expect bounce houses, cornhole, basketball, cash prizes and a free raffle in which guests receive a ticket as they arrive, with gifts handed out during the event.
Plaques will be presented to honor some of the original Old Timers.
According to Wright, one plaque will recognize an original Old Timer who has passed away, while another will go to a living original Old Timer.
Beyond the festival, OTR operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and runs a yearlong scholarship program for students at Glasgow, Caverna and Barren County schools.
The $1,000 scholarship is structured around community service and youth involvement with the organization.
Students in the program are required to complete 20 hours of volunteer work, much of which can be done through OTR itself.
Participants must also design and carry out their own fundraiser, which is generally supported financially by the Old Timers Reunion group.
To finish the program, students are asked to submit a 300-word paper describing their experience with OTR and what they learned.
The organization sees the scholarship as a way to bring more youth into the Old Timers organization and keep the tradition going.
Key Facts
• Old Timers Festival set for Saturday, Sept. 5, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. at Luska J. Twyman Park in Glasgow
• Event is the 6th annual edition of the revived Old Timers Festival, rooted in a 50-year-old community reunion
• Hosted by Old Timers Reunion, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit known as OTR
• Food trucks, DJ Reezy, bounce houses, cornhole, basketball and cash prizes are planned
• Free raffle as guests arrive, with gifts given away throughout the day
• Plaques will honor both a late and a living original Old Timers
• OTR offers a $1,000 yearlong volunteer scholarship for local students
• Organization is also active in efforts to improve Twyman Park
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