People who remember Beau remember the smiles he brought.
Jim and Jena Kelly, Beau’s parents, plan to keep those smiles happening in honor and remembrance of their son.
Beau Kelly passed away unexpectedly in 2023 at four years old from a cardiac condition.
Beau’s Festival is planned for May 3 at the Upper Mount Bethel Township Community Park on Potomac Street to raise money to build a playground in honor of Beau.
“We wanted to do something in remembrance of him and to honor him,” Jim Kelly said. “Late last year, we devised an idea to build a playground.”
The festival runs from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. It will feature games, a truck show, inflatables, raffles, food vendors and will be followed by fireworks after the sun goes down.
Kelly said the fireworks display could be bigger than the township’s usual July 4 fireworks show.
“It’s an event that is geared around kids and kids’ activities,” Kelly said. “They’re things that Beau would have loved to see and been a part of.”
Proceeds from the fundraiser will go toward building a playground at Mount Bethel Church at 1270 Belvidere Corner Road in Upper Mount Bethel Township.
The church has agreed to provide the land for the playground, Kelly said, but it will be open to the general public.
The budget for playground materials is $92,000, Kelly said. Labor to build it will be provided for free.
The Kellys have raised $18,000 so far through efforts including a GoFundMe campaign.
The entrance fee to Beau’s Festival will cost a donation amount of the guest’s choosing.
“We’re making things accessible so people can give what they can,” Kelly said.
Individual games and food vendors will have specific prices attached. Entrance fees, games and inflatables will be cash only but some food vendors may offer electronic payments.
The rain date for the festival is May 17.