ITHACA, N.Y. (WENY) -- The Commons in Ithaca came alive for the 47th Annual Ithaca Festival.  Thousands of people attended the three day event, and many see it as an unofficial kick-off to the summer season.

"There's a lot of craft vendors, music performances by different bands, and its just a time for the community to come together and have a good time, its the start of the summer really," said Kerry Buckman, a volunteer with Ithaca Festival.

Some have been attending Ithaca Festival for most of their lives, and for others, its a new experience.  Most could agree that Ithaca Festival brings something special to the community.

"Normally in the summer, its more empty, so its cool to see all these things going on, and feel like Ithaca is alive," said Simon Alford, an attendee.

As a yearly tradition, Ithaca Festival creates a button.  The button features artwork, done by a local artist chosen in a contest.  2024's button features this year's theme, Let The Sunshine In!  The buttons also serve a special purpose in helping the free festival return year after year.

"The buttons, as you can see, have been a thing for almost all of the years of the festival which started in 1977. Its almost always been $5 and that goes all towards the festival. Its how we help to fund the festival beyond getting corporate sponsorships and things like that. This is how the community helps to fund the festival and come back year after year," said Deirdre Kurzweil, a member of the Ithaca Festival board.

The buttons serve as a reminder of Ithaca Festival in the past, and what's to come in the future.