During my first round of interviews, more than one person told me, “You need to talk to Chris Naegele.”

So I made an extra trip home to do just that.

Chris is a former Apple Festival chairman and, to me, an important link between the festival’s early years and the one we know today. He helped establish the committee structure under which the festival has continued to thrive, and his influence can still be felt in the organization today.

But perhaps just as important as the mark Chris left on the festival was his understanding that it was never supposed to belong to any one person.

I’ll let him tell you the rest.

Thank you, Chris, for taking the time to share your Murphysboro Apple Festival story—and for helping build something others could carry forward.