Going home is a little bit like a Thanksgiving meal.
There are certain expectations, and we kind of like them just the way they’ve always been. At our house, our traditional meal includes turkey, potatoes and gravy, corn, stuffing and pumpkin pie. Add in something cranberry and a few other sides that can rotate for the adventurous guests, and it’s a perfect feast.
Hopefully, Flandreau is a little bit like that this weekend when out-of-towners visit for the Sesquicentennial, the highly anticipated 150th birthday, and the all-school reunion.
There will be plenty of things that just feels like home: morning doughnuts at the Flandreau Bakery, an alumni band concert, the Moody County Museum Festival, the Dusk-to-Dawn dance and the street dance on what the locals call “Bar Street,” a trip to the Royal River Casino or the enjoyment of their fireworks show from your own lawn, and a meal of a barbecue and ice cream cone at The Spot.

The parade will be a highlight because this town does parades as well as anywhere.
But there will be just enough new to let people know that Flandreau still is growing and changing like any healthy small town should. There are new restaurants to try, including Fajitas Bar & Grill and El Rinconsito, and new businesses open on downtown’s main street, including Gone2Pieces and the Red Rock Trading Company. There will be vendors offering some of the traditional Flandreau food favorites along with some new samplings.
There certainly are new faces in the crowds of long-time Flandreau residents, people who have moved to town because they saw opportunities or found jobs to support their families. Others have stayed for generations because they love the smaller-town atmosphere or have invested in a legacy business.
For more than a year, committees have been putting a lot of hard work into making the Sesquicentennial and all-school reunion something to be proud of, to provide enjoyment to locals and visitors and to showcase Flandreau. But it’s not quite time to sit back and relax. It’s time to get out and enjoy all that is offered, most of it at no cost.
Flandreau isn’t complete without one key ingredient – you.
Show up to the events, take in the inflatables park at the Casino, be present at the parade or put together a float and join in the fun. Enjoy the music, eat the food, dance and most of all, celebrate 150 years together in a vibrant small town.