Hundreds of bikers ride into Fort Jennings to kick off "Fort Fest"

FORT JENNINGS, OH (WLIO) - Patriotism filled the entire village of Fort Jennings on Friday as residents began a full weekend of festivities!

The Putnam County village kicked off this year's Fort Fest with the biker escort tradition of the POW/MIA wall as a way to pay tribute for our soldiers. Nearly 400 bikers, along with emergency and military vehicles, started their engines in Beaverdam and rode through Delphos, Kalida, and Ottoville before arriving back in Fort Jennings. When the bikers arrived, the streets were lined up with festival goers passionately waving the American flag, a sight that symbolizes the meaning of Fort Fest—to honor those brave men and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.

"It's a huge impact on not only Fort Jennings but the surrounding communities. There's a lot of healing that we call goes on. A lot of people that have been in the military in the past... you know, we try to make them feel like they're welcome home in the past and the welcome home that they didn't get back, especially in the Vietnam era... so that's what we kind of try to strive for. But it's a healing time; it's a fun time, but we just try to bring everybody together and support our military," says Jason Grothause, committee member for Fort Fest.

Fort Fest continues all weekend long in Fort Jennings with many exhibits and events, including the GoldStars Tribute Wall, the Hometown Heroes and Master Modeler exhibits, and the American Huey membership flights. For a full list of events, go to https://fjfortfest.com/.