HISTORY
THE LEGACY OF SUWANEE FEST
Suwanee Fest, formerly known as and fondly named “Suwanee Day,” started in May 1984 as a small, one-day celebration of community next to the old fire station on Main Street. As the City of Suwanee grew, so did the festival, moving locations to Town Center Park in 2004 to accommodate the increasing crowds. The pace didn’t slow as Suwanee Day evolved into a two-day festival in 2014, officially adopting the name Suwanee Fest.
Always a celebration of community, Suwanee Fest embraced the idea of theming each annual festival in 2016. Past themes include: superhero (2016), construction zone (2017), bicentennial (2018), circus (2019), pirate (2021), space (2022), wild wild west(2023), and honoring our 40th anniversary this year we are celebrating in 80s style!
Awards
Suwanee Fest is a nationally recognized, award-winning festival held in Suwanee, Georgia in the southeastern United States. Consistently named a Top 20 Event by the Southeast Tourism Society and repeatedly honored by the Southeast Festivals and Events Association (SFEA) as the Best Festival, Suwanee Fest is an experience you don’t want to miss. Even more, Suwanee Fest is planned and executed by two award-winning employees, both named “Event Professional of the Year” by the SFEA.
Check out the other outstanding accolades received for this fantastic two-day festival:
2023
Wild Wild West
Best T-Shirt (GOLD) | Suwanee Fest Staff Shirt “not my first rodeo,” Southeast Festivals & Events Association
Best Event Photo (GOLD) | Suwanee Fest “Storyteller,” Southeast Festivals & Events Association
Best Photo Op (SILVER) | Bob the Statuary Man, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
2022
Greatest in the Galaxy
Best Event Over $75,000 (bronze) | Suwanee Fest 2022, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
Best Children’s Event (bronze) | Suwanee Fest 2022, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
2021
Treasure Awaits
Best Event over $75,000 (Silver) | Suwanee Fest 2021, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
Best Program or Brochure | Suwanee Fest 2021 Suwanee Magazine insert, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
Best Volunteer | Kate Fanale for Suwanee Fest, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
2020
Treasure Awaits (Virtual)
Best COVID Community Response | Southeast Festivals & Events Association
2019
The Greatest Festival on Earth
Best Volunteer (Silver) | Kate Fanale for Suwanee Fest 2019, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
Best Poster (Silver) | Suwanee Fest 2019 designed by Veugeler Design Group, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
2018
A Celebration of Community
Best Event Within an Event (Gold) | Gwinnett’s Bicentennial Celebration at Suwanee Fest, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
Best Sponsor (Gold) | for Tiger Tails Animal Hospital at Suwanee Fest, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
Best Photograph (Silver) | for Suwanee Fest, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
Best Event Program (Silver) | for Suwanee Fest, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
2017
Community at Work
Best Children’s Programming (Silver) | for Suwanee Fest, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
Best Vendor (Bronze) | for Classic Tents & Events at Suwanee Fest, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
2016
Super City, Super People
Most Creative Idea (Bronze) | for Suwanee Youth Leaders/Suwanee Fest Transportation Collaboration, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
2015
For the Love of Suwanee
Best Volunteer (Silver) | for Suwanee Fest Volunteer Planning Committee, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
Best Children’s Program (Bronze) | for Suwanee Fest, Southeast Festivals & Events Association
2014
Twice as Nice
And so it was born!
Best Festival with a budget over $75,000 (Gold) | for Suwanee Fest, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best Volunteer (Gold) | for Suwanee Fest, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best Creative Idea (Gold) | for hosting a Blast a Storm Trooper activity at Suwanee Fest, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best T-shirt (Silver) | for Suwanee Fest, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
2013
Suwanee Day
Best Creative Idea (Gold) | for Suwanee Day sponsor gifts, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best Event Photo (Bronze) | for Suwanee Day, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
2012
Suwanee Day
Best Sponsor (Gold) | for Suwanee Day sponsor Lewis Expo and Logistics, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best Event Photo (Silver) | for Suwanee Day, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best T-Shirt (Bronze) | for Suwanee Day, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best Creative Idea (Bronze) | for Suwanee Day volunteer pocket guide, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best Vendor/Supplier (Bronze) | for Suwanee Day vendor FunFare, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
2011
Suwanee Day
Best Event within an Event (Silver) | for Suwanee Day Flash Mob, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Suwanee Day named to Top 20 Events for September 2011 | Southeast Tourism Society
2010
Suwanee Day
Best Festival (with a budget under $75,000) (Silver) | for Suwanee Day, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best Volunteer (Silver) | for Suwanee Day, Transportation Chair Doug Schwendy, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best Green Component (Bronze) | for Suwanee Day, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
2009
Suwanee Day
Best Sponsor (Gold) | Ippolito’s, for Suwanee Day, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
2008
Suwanee Day
Best Event Volunteer – Events Under $75,000 (Gold) | for Suwanee Day, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best Event Website (Bronze) – suwaneeday.com | Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best Miscellaneous Merchandise (Bronze) | for Suwanee Day 2008 Commemorative Poster, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
2007
Suwanee Day
Best Event Sponsor (Primrose Schools of Suwanee) | for Suwanee Day, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best Event Volunteer (Kim Towne) | for Suwanee Day 2007, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
Best Event Within an Event | for Sail-A-Bration at Suwanee Day 2007, Southeast Festivals and Events Association
2006
Suwanee Day
Southeast Tourism Society Top 20 Event for September 2006 | Suwanee Day Festival
