MILWAUKEE -- A year after the unrest in the Sherman Park neighborhood, Shermanfest is back with a mission to build lasting bonds in the community.
“We’re family and we’re a community," Sarah Weber said. "We’re here [and] we’re in this together."
Weber is the principal of Sherman Park Lutheran, the school that hosts the event, and she's the brains behind the festival's operation. The purpose of the fest is to kick off the back to school season, but it also helps to bring a broken neighborhood back together.
“Even if there is unrest in the community we’re still here to serve," Weber said. "We’re not going anywhere. We love the children and we love the parents and everybody in the community."
The unrest in the Sherman Park neighborhood happened just a year ago. In fact, according to Weber, discord in the community broke out the very day of Shermanfest last year and that’s why parents like Ashley Friday consider this event is so important.
“To see that the neighbors actually come together and the schools actually take part in the neighborhood coming together, it’s really special," Ashley Friday said.
According to Friday, the neighborhood coming together for an event like this is such a positive thing, plus it sets the tone for future generations and those who say they hope to see a more united Milwaukee in the years to come.
“If they stop doing all the violence then Milwaukee might get better and [people] might start coming back," 11-year-old Deantae said.
Shermanfest was once a staple in the community, but the school stopped hosting the event for a number of years. This year is the second year of the fest since its revival.
