Apr. 13, 2019

Let your spirit catch the wind and soar to new heights during Metropolitan Community College’s Flights of Fancy Mega Kite Festival.

Kites will fill the sky over the north lawn at MCC-Longview in Lee’s Summit on Saturday, April 20, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The event is free.

Great American Kites & Events will put on a professional display featuring mega kites, power kites, stunt kites and the world’s largest windsock. It’s three stories high and 200 feet long!

MCC workforce/community education coordinator Tami Morrow helps organize the event. She says the huge kites are what people always remember.

“Think huge, hot air balloon-sized kites. Some are longer than a basketball court and several are three stories tall,” Morrow says.

The public is invited to bring and fly their own kites at designated fields. If you don’t have a kite, you can buy one at the festival.

Along with the kites there will be family-friendly activities including an inflatable maze, face painting and a candy drop.

There will also be plenty of space for family picnics, or you can buy food and drink from vendors at the event. But organizers ask that you leave your grills and pets at home.

“Friends and families from infants to seniors can relax together as they marvel at the incredible spectacle in the sky,” Morrow says. “Kite flying is a peaceful thing. Watching the kites dance in the sky is both therapeutic and awe-inspiring.”

This is the 13th year for the festival. It was the dream child of former MCC-Longview president Fred Grogan.

During the first year 3,500 people attended. Since then, attendance has grown to more than 35,000.

Through the years the festival has gained a national audience, Morrow says.

“We bring folks to the Longview campus from all over the city and country. A shout-out to the event has even been in Martha Stewart Living magazine.”

MCC Community Education organizes the festival. To ensure that admission remains free, sponsors, vendors and grants cover the event’s costs. Some of the money raised also helps fund five $500 scholarships.

There is plenty of free parking at MCC-Longview. The campus is located on Southwest Longview Road east of View High Drive in Lee’s Summit.