Paying tribute to German American culture with Sommerfest

German American culture will be celebrated once again during Sommerfest at Plattduetsche Park in Franklin Square on Sunday, July 9.

The Plattduetsche Volksfest Vereen — offering assistance and fellowship to German immigrants — will hold its annual Sommerfest, this time in a one-day event, from noon to 9 p.m.

Sommerfest will feature traditional food, beer brewed by German Americans, games, raffles, music and dance performances.

The plethora of traditional foods will include all kinds of wurst, hot dogs, a dry sausage called landjaeger, potato pancakes and seafood. The seafood might surprise neighbors because the popular representations of German culture come from Bavaria, and not seaside towns. But Plattduetsche celebrates both Bavaria and Northern Germany, where the community lived on the North Sea.

“When most people think about German stuff in the United States, they think about Bavarian stuff — people in lederhosen,” Michael Rabus, director of the Plattduetsche Volksfest Vereen, said. “But in reality, when Plattduetsche Park was first originated, a lot of the people were from Northern Germany, and that’s where the Plattduetsche people first were in existence.”

Rabus initially got involved in German American organizations 25 years ago, around the time his daughter, Catherine, was born. Last year, he said, she was crowned Miss German-America queen of the Steuben Parade in New York City, another celebration of German American culture. 

Plattduetsche Park was founded in the 1910s and today houses a beer garden, restaurant, soccer field and a senior living center called the Plattduetsche Home and Renken Apartments. Sommerfest itself was once held in Brooklyn, and has been around for 138 years. At that time it was called Volksfest, which translates to folk festival. 

Over the years, the mission of the organization has been to provide social welfare to its members and the German American community. This includes supporting the senior apartments, building a hospital that offers free medical care to members of the group and providing stipends to those experiencing hardship. The German Hospital Corporation was spun off independently once the hospital was built, and is now called the Wyckoff Heights Medical Center.

The group also works to promote German American heritage and educate others on history, such as that Nassau is a state in Germany, not just the county on Long Island.  

This year, Sommerfest will feature two bands — Foehrer Musik Freunde and Die Spitzbuam. The former is a classic big brass band that will play traditional German songs as they were played in the old country. The latter takes those same songs and plays them with rock instruments, including guitar and drums, for an updated take. 

Tom Hacker, who has been playing in the Foehrer Musik Freunde band since he was 13 and attending Sommerfest since he was born, is chairman of the operating committee for this year’s festival. 

Hacker’s fondest memory of Sommerfest is from a few years ago, when Germany was playing Argentina in the World Cup, and everyone had their eyes glued to the game on TV during the festival. 

“Personally, being a musician, I like the music (at the festival),” Hacker said.  

The July 9 celebration will also feature a variety of games for all ages, such as a potato-peeling contest and a nail-hammering competition for adults. For the kids, a bouncy house and giant slide will be available. Families can enjoy performances from four different traditional dance groups, as well as test their luck with some raffles for prizes. 

Roughly 5,000 people attended last year’s two-day event, and although Sommerfest is taking place only one day this year, organizers said they still expect a few thousand visitors to attend.