There will be hundreds of visitors to the Kokomo area throughout the month of September with the first of several events taking place this weekend.
During the next few weeks, the city will host two softball tournaments, the state convention for the Fraternal Order of Eagles, the Vietnam Veterans Reunion and members of the Volkswagen Club.
The three-day Church League Softball Tournament, hosted by the Mennonite Church, began Saturday at Northwest Park. The championship game is at 1 p.m. Monday and admission for spectators is free.
Kim Morgan, sales manager for the Kokomo/Howard County Convention & Visitor’s Bureau, said there are 26 teams coming from around Indiana and surrounding states.
She said the tournament will use approximately 250 hotel rooms for two nights.
Additionally, Morgan said, the National Softball Association will conduct the women’s slow-pitch world series from Friday through Sept. 12 at Northwest Park.
She said the tournament had booked 50 rooms for two nights and added 20 more rooms. The tournament is expected to attract 50 teams.
Morgan said the Grissom Air Reserve has booked 300 rooms in Kokomo for Friday for an event that takes place on the first Friday of every month.
The industry average is that each room will generate $150 per day toward the local economy.
“Everyone will receive a tourist bag that includes information about local attractions and restaurants,” Morgan said. “This is among our biggest weekends of the year.”
Morgan said the hope is that the two softball tournaments will return to Kokomo in the future.
“The women’s world series came through an initiative from our office,” Morgan said.
The Fraternal Order of Eagles will be in Kokomo the weekend of Sept. 25. Attendees have blocked out between 75 and 125 hotel rooms each of three nights.
“We have a good relationship with the Eagles,” said Morgan.
Possibly the largest tourist draw this month is the 28th annual Howard County Vietnam Veterans Reunion, scheduled from Sept. 17-19 at the Veterans Grounds.
Morgan’s hope for each of the events this month is that area residents will make the visitors feel welcome in the community.
“This will be a great month for everyone — the hotels, restaurants, gas stations and retail stores,” she said. “This is the kind of business we want to attract to Kokomo.”
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