Big Glen Burnie Carnival canceled, ‘unlikely’ to return

Following mounting financial struggles and a decline in volunteers, the century-old Big Glen Burnie Carnival has been canceled this year and is “unlikely” to return, according to carnival organizers.

Held nearly every summer since 1908, the beloved carnival put on by the Glen Burnie Improvement Association offered northern Anne Arundel County residents nights full of rides, midway games and sweet and savory treats. Some families would plan summer vacations around the carnival, and many volunteers would take off from work to run the show.

But this year, organizers said that it was “no longer economically feasible” for the association to hold the carnival due to a lack of volunteers, increasing expenses and the inability to establish an equitable agreement with the carnival company, according to a Facebook post. The news was met with mixed reactions on social media, but organizers remain firm in their decision.

“We are not ashamed of canceling this event,” said Candy Fontz, secretary of the Glen Burnie Improvement Association and the carnival chair. “We are proud of more than a century of a tradition in this community. We are proud of the hours we dedicated to it.”

Though the annual event persevered through a flu epidemic, two world wars, the Great Depression and the 2008 recession, recent years brought challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic paused festivities for two years, and in 2022, the carnival grounds were rented to an outside carnival provider — a change from the events led solely by volunteers previously.

Last year, organizers attempted to bring back the carnival that residents had grown to know and love, Fontz said, but deep down, they knew it wouldn’t be feasible. The decision to cancel was made in February and told to members of the Glen Burnie Improvement Association in March.

Doubled insurance and food costs made it impossible to continue.

“As we move on, there’s no way that we’re able to do that and keep it at a price point that everybody has become familiar with,” Fontz said. “We’ve done this for 115 years and we never want to be the price gougers.”

For Brandy Fletcher, who grew up in Pasadena and has attended the carnival since she was 15, taking her six children to the carnival on “wristband nights” so they could ride all night for a low price made going there both fun and economical. Now that this year’s carnival is off, Fletcher is sad that her ]grandchildren won’t be able to look forward to the same family tradition.

“They’re never going to be able to experience what my children experienced growing up,” she said, though she’s hopeful it will return in the future.

Longtime volunteers are also getting older and carnival organizers have found that the younger generations aren’t stepping up as much. But even dedicated volunteers like Barbara Moeller, who served as president of the Glen Burnie Improvement Association and chair of the Big Glen Burnie Carnival for decades until her death in March, knew that the carnival could not happen this year, Fontz said.

“We’re all just kind of finding our footing and where we fit best in moving forward in [Barbara’s] absence,” she said. “We need to fill her shoes, but at the same time, we need new shoes. There has to be new ideas and fresh thoughts to hopefully recruit more people to help.”

As the Glen Burnie Improvement Association transitions into a new era without Moeller at the helm, its board of directors is looking at different ideas to carry them into the future. For now, a committee is organizing the first annual Barb Moeller “Mayorial” Roast. Set for July 20, the fundraiser will feature Oracle, Moeller’s favorite band and foods.

“It’s a group of volunteers doing the absolute best they can with what they have at hand,” Fontz said, “and sometimes, you just have to realize that traditions have to change.”