Bagpipes, Highland cattle and a mini horse: Celtic Fest is back at Block 34

The Highland Games. Demonstrations of "strength, skill, and spectacle" run at 3, 5 and 7 p.m., and there's a kids' version, too. Leprechaun Corner runs 2 to 8 p.m. with Celtic crafts and Highland Games-style activities for children, and Baxter the Kelpie, a mini horse, visits from 4 to 5:30.

Sheep-herding demonstrations run at 2, 4 and 6 p.m. Highland cattle are on site from 2 to 7. Bagpipes get their own demo at 2:30.

Five acts play on the schedule: Cairde na Gael at 3, Ravens Three at 4:30, Flowers of Edinburgh at 6, Waxie Dargles at 7:30 and the City of Tulsa Bagpipes at 8:30. The McTeggart Irish Dancers perform at 5:30 and Okie Skye Highland Dance at 7, and the night ends with céilí dancing and a family jam at 8:45. The organizers say the crowd is welcome to join in.

Don't skip the Choctaw Nation presentation. It covers the historic tie between Ireland and the Choctaw people during the Great Famine, and it's an Oklahoma story.

In 1847, according to the Choctaw Nation, the Choctaws, only recently arrived in what is now Oklahoma after the Trail of Tears, collected $170 (more than $5,000 in today's money) for Irish famine relief. It was sent to Midleton, in County Cork. In 2017 Midleton dedicated a sculpture called "Kindred Spirits" in the Choctaws' honor, and in 2020 Irish donors paid the kindness forward by raising money for the Navajo and Hopi during the pandemic. Chief Gary Batton gave the Choctaw word for that kind of act: "iyyikowa," serving those in need.

Twelve food trucks and drink makers are listed, including Fellowship Grounds, El Sabroso, Bagpipe Bites, Shamrock Swagger, The Tasty Tipi, Southern Oak Kitchen and Shorteez Tastee Treats, plus Pecan Creek Winery, Dancing Skeleton Meadery, Stonecloud and Chuck's Public House.

Nineteen vendors, artists and non-profits fill out the park, from Kommando Kilts and Lost Boy Leather to Onyx Ceramics & Candles, Bella Roze Art and The Burning Okie. The heritage groups are there, too: the Braman Scottish Association, Clan Campbell Society of North America and Clan Gunn.