🍀Presenting: Fall Family Fun Fair

Happy Friday! This newsletter is for the newbies, the lifers, the townies, and the domers.

In today’s digest:

• The Farmers Market Trail: Ben’s Pretzels 🥨 

• First Fridays in South Bend 🐶 

• Wednesday Wine Walk 🍷 

• Special Highlight: Wellfield Gardens 🪴 

This issue is 941 words, a 3.5-minute read.

The Digest

The Farmers Market Trail: Ben’s Pretzels 🥨 

This week’s journey is taking us to Ben’s Pretzels! While there are many locations throughout the country, the easiest one to access (without paying for a baseball, basketball, or football ticket) is at the South Bend Farmer’s Market! There, you can grab fresh pretzels or snag a make-your-own pretzel kit!

About: “Ben's Soft Pretzels was started in 2008 in America's heartland by three visionary entrepreneurs who were passionate about great-tasting food. Scott Jones, Brian Krider, and Benjamin Miller co-founded Ben's Soft Pretzels after a divine sequence of events brought the three businessmen together. The recipe for our delicious soft pretzel was a result of a labor of love by Ben and his wife on their Amish homestead. The first Ben's Soft Pretzels bakery opened in 2008 in Concord Mall in Elkhart, Indiana, and the first franchise was awarded in 2013. Today, there are more than 150+ Ben's Soft Pretzels bakeries in 17 states!

What’s Worth Trying:

• Pretzels? DUH! 🥨 

• Mini Pretzels (Pretzel Bites)

• Pepperoni and Cheese Bites

📍Where to find in the market: Ben’s Pretzels is located on the South side of the market. Get there early for the freshest pretzels and to beat the rush!

 The Happenings in the Bend

🍿 First Fridays: Dog Days of Summer

☀️ It’s the first Friday of the month today, so you know what that means!

Downtown South Bend will be full of vendors and food, and fun for everyone — but especially your furry friends!

🐶 It’s the Dog Days of Summer, everyone!

Details

 🍂 Fall Family Fun Fair 🎃 

Head on over to Rum Village and enjoy all manner of fall things and fun for the whole family!

• Explore community booths showcasing local organizations and vendors.

• Get creative with pumpkin painting and other fall-themed activities.

• Enjoy family-friendly programming all day long.

• Witness a special ceremonial tree planting to honor Rum Village Nature Center’s 50 years.

🍂 🌳 Details

More events in South Bend

A mix of things happening this weekend and into next week!

 🎸 Seven Guitars: The South Bend Civic Theatre is putting on this Pulitzer-Nominated play this weekend! Tickets → Details

⚙️ Gears and Grub: Grab our wheels and head on over to Newton Park to enjoy some food trucks and fun for the whole family every Friday night in September! Admission is Free!  Details

🎤 Jennifer Knapp Show: Back by popular demand, Stockroom East presents Jennifer Knapp in concert! Details

 💃 Wednesday Wine Walk: The September wine walk is next Wednesday! Grab your pass and explore as many of the participating restaurants as you can! Details

 🕺 South Bend Cubs Last Game of the Season: With the end of summer comes your last chance to watch the South Bend Cubs! Grab tickets and catch one of the last games of the season this weekend. Details

 🌈 Adult Recess Summer Send Off Edition: Head on over to Rum Village and enjoy recess again! Drinks, food, fun and games (think giant jenga, cornhole, and capture the flag) are all waiting for you at Adult Recess! Details

💻 First Nations Digital Sovereignty Summit: Notre Dame will host a conference to discuss ways to achieve digital sovereignty for First Nations. Details

 🎳 Play With A Player: Always wanted to test your skills against other athletes? Or just want to hang out with your favorite soccer stars at our local universities? Now’s your chance to hang out with soccer stars from Bethel University and Holy Cross College at Generations Adventure Plex! Details 

✨ SPECIAL HIGHLIGHT: The Elkhart Symphony is performing at the Wellfield Botanical Gardens on Sunday! If you’ve never been to Wellfield, then you’ve definitely been missing out on the region’s ONLY botanical garden! Details

✨Coming soon✨

🍷 Wine Glass Painting: Sign up to drink wine and paint wine glasses at Ironhand! Details

👸 South Bend Royal Princess: The princess(es) are coming! Check it out → Details

🦒 Notre Dame vs Texas A&M: Grab your tickets for the first home game of the season! Tickets

👻 Boo To You @ Indiana University - South Bend: IU South Bend’s ‘Boo To You’ festival (Oct. 11, 4–8 pm, Student Activities Center) is back with carnival games, candy, crafts, and a Monster Mash dance—fun for the whole family! Details

🍁 Fall Artisan Market: Grab tickets to this year’s fall artisan market at the St. Joseph County fairgrounds! Details

Rapid Fire Hits

Quick headlines and things to know from all around 🌐

👩‍🚒 Notre Dame Students Remember 9/11: Notre Dame Students will be climbing the stairs in Duncan Student Center to honor first responders on 9/11. Details

💚 South Bend Tourism Season Has Arrived: In most places, summer is the height of tourism. Not in the Bend! With the return of students, businesses across South Bend and the wider region are seeing an increase! Details

🎃 Pumkin-Picking at Kercher Farms: Fancy a fun fall activity this weekend? Head on over to Kercher’s Sunrise Orchard and grab all the fal things you could need for the season! Details

Happy Friday! See you around the Bend!

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