Celebrate Spring at Germanfest

The German-American Society of Tulsa’s 7th annual Germanfest promises to be fun for the whole family, with free admission and free entertainment.

The German-American Society of Tulsa’s 7th annual Germanfest promises to be fun for the whole family, with free admission and free entertainment. It’s Friday, April 30 through Sunday, May 2. “In the German tradition, whole families get together to enjoy food, fellowship and music,” says Hannelore Giles, Germanfest’s chair and emcee. “It’s a fun get-together to celebrate the coming of spring.”

Germanfest will be held on the lawn and in the Great Hall of the GAST Center at 1429 Terrace Dr. “We transform our building in the spirit of a German beer hall,” says Giles. “It’s a beautiful facility, with long rows of tables.”

There will be plenty of authentic German food for sale, including bratwurst, polish sausage and hot dogs, kartoffelpuffer (German potato pancakes), and schnitzel sandwiches and dinners, with sides including potato salad, sauerkraut, and house salads. Beer, soda, coffee, iced tea and water will also be available.

The German-American Society will have a variety of imported German collectibles for sale. “One of our members goes to Germany and brings back things like beer steins, foods, T-shirts, scarves, chocolates, cookies, glassware, woodcarvings and more,” says Giles.

Germanfest entertainment will include the GAST choir, folk dancers and Blaskapelle. The main band consists of Sepp and Heinz from Germany, playing a variety of instruments and jodeling. Giles promises that you can expect to do everyone’s favorite oom-pah song, the Chicken Dance. There will be activities for the kids, and the German-American Society will crown their Maikönigin (May Queen) on Saturday at 12:30.

Proceeds from Germanfest will benefit the German-American Society of Tulsa’s youth programs and cultural and musical activities. “We’re here to expose other people to German culture,” says Giles. “Some of our members have emigrated from Germany, some have German heritage, and some are people who don’t have any German heritage, but who enjoy it.”

The German-American Society offers a number of programs, Giles says, including scholarships for German-oriented studies and multiple levels of conversational German classes for both kids and adults, taught by native speakers. They hold a German movie night once a month. The German-American Society features a choir that sings traditional German songs, and a troupe of German folk dancers.

The German-American Society puts on a number of other events throughout the year. Perhaps the most notable is the Christkindlmarkt (Christmas Market) in early December, which offers traditional German food, nutcrackers, incense-burning smoker men, imported Christmas tree ornaments, great music, and plenty of activities for the kids.

The German-American Society of Tulsa’s Germanfest is Friday, April 30 and Saturday, May 1 from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sunday, May 2 from noon to 5 p.m. “You should come on an empty stomach, bring the whole family, and be ready to have a good time, get up and dance,” says Giles. For more information on Germanfest and the German-American Society of Tulsa, visit www.gastulsa.org.

For more information, contact

German-American Society of Tulsa

1429 Terrace Dr.

Tulsa, OK 74104

(918) 744-6997

www.gastulsa.org