Auburn, NY's Summer Homecoming Weekend 2025 - August 8, 9 and 10, 2025!

Formerly Founders Day, new Summer Homecoming brand aims to spotlight the best of Auburn with summer celebrations for locals and visitors alike.

Date of Release, July 10, 2025 - Mark your calendars for August 8 – 10, 2025 as the City of Auburn showcases and celebrates all that downtown Auburn and our fine city has to offer at the inaugural Summer Homecoming Weekend.  Numerous weekend events will feature live music, art-making and vending, cultural walking tours and kid’s activities, and outdoor fun and recreation.  This inaugural Summer Homecoming is a rebrand of the 15-year Founder’s Day celebration and may also be referenced in 2025 as the Founder’s Day finale.

Highlights of the weekend include:

Friday, August 8th attend the inaugural Summer Homecoming Concert at the State Street Bandshell with the band Chris Eves and the New Normal performing from 7-10pm.  This event will be held on the block of State Street between Genesee St. and Dill St. and is sponsored by the Auburn Downtown BID, the NYS Equal Rights Heritage Center and the City of Auburn.

Saturday, August 9th will feature lots of events city-wide, including…

All Saturday events will be linked between 10am through 4pm with a free shuttle ride sponsored by the NYS Equal Rights Heritage Center.

• The Downtown Saturday Market at the NYS Equal Rights Heritage Center will host from 9am-4pm food & artisan vendors. Kid’s activities include face painting, Jeff the Magic Man Balloon Art from 9-11am and Bubble Playground from 11am-1pm. Live music at the market includes the band Honky Tonk Hindooz from 10am-1pm followed by Sydney Irving from 1-4pm.  The Seward House Museum will host a free History’s Hometown Walking Tour beginning at 9:30am.
• The downtown Equal Rights Heritage Center will host the Royal Promise Productions princess’ for meet and greet and photos from 10:30am-1:30pm.
• The downtown State Street Event Plaza will host the Auburn Summer Recreation program’s fun zone between 10am-1pm.  At 2pm there will be a Way of Guitar concert. At 4pm there will be a Perform 4 Purpose Concert.
• The Auburn Public Theater will host an open house of their newly renovated Owasco Room from 11am-1pm.
• A Genesee Street Block Party will be held on the block of Genesee Street between the west side of State St. and east side of Dill St./William St.  This party will feature three bands on the City’s show mobile stage: Ruby Shooz from Noon – 2pm, Showtime the Band from 2:30-4pm and Mark Doyle and the Maniacs from 4:30-6pm.  Merchants on the block will feature food & beverage offerings.
• The Willard Memorial Chapel will be the host site of the Finger Lakes Art Council’s Festival of Art & Crows.  The event will feature 25 participating creatives, food and live music.
• The new West End Arts Campus will be open and the Cayuga Museum will be hosting kid’s activities from 10am – 2pm.  Visitors can check out the beautiful new campus which links the Schweinfurth Art Center with the Cayuga Museum, Case Research Lab and Carriage House Theater into this dynamic new arts quad.  Featured activities include Bunch of Bubbles 10 AM - 2 PM (Bunch of Bubbles is the Finger Lakes’ Premier Bubble Entertainment Service! Founded in 2018 by Karen Stark, an award-winning cosmetic chemist, fiber artist, former circus camp counselor, and Mom. Bring the whole family for a day of fun with bubbles.) Space Race | 11 AM - 2 PM Bring the family to create your own straw and bottle rockets for a fun simulation of the "Space Race." (This activity is in conjunction with the Museum's current exhibit exploring the local impact of the Korean War. -Support for this program is provided by the Technology Alliance of Central New York (TACNY) and the J.M. McDonald Foundation) and, The Dusty & Dott Show | 12 - 1 PM  (The Dusty & Dott Show is a 30 minute, LIVE performance, showcasing the power of storytelling. Dusty & Dott will utilize puppetry, improvisation, audience participation, dancing and humor. The free spirited nature of this live show nurtures playfulness, acceptance, wonder and a sense of community.)
• The Harriet Tubman National Historical Park on located on 49 Parker Street will be open for tours on both Friday and Saturday from 10am-4pm.  The church is open for self-guided tours during open hours, while the parsonage serves as a visitor contact station. This new site officially opened in 2024.
• All Saturday events will be linked between 10am through 4pm with a free shuttle ride sponsored by the NYS Equal Rights Heritage Center.  Downtown the shuttle pick-up and drop-off will be at the heritage center entrance on Lincoln Street and the shuttle will make a continuous loop all day among the three stops of the heritage center, the Willard Chapel and the West End Arts Campus.  The downtown parking garage offers plenty of free parking for the day.

On Sunday, August 10 attend the 47th annual Great Race Team Triathlon at Emerson Park at 9:30am, followed by the after party on Deauville Island. This team relay event includes runners, bikers, and paddlers in a canoe/kayak, or on a paddleboard. For more info and to register your team visit: www.great-race.com

https://www.auburnny.gov/parks-recreation-department/pages/2025-summer-homecoming-weekend