Pioche preserves tradition with another Labor Day celebration

“We did it!” announced Tayler Cornforth via Facebook Sept. 7. “Despite COVID and all the obstacles we had to cross, it was a great Labor Day weekend.”

And there was no shortage of obstacles. Between the threat of COVID-19, the cancelation of the Labor Day celebration, the subsequent disbanding of the Labor Day Committee and the reestablishment of that same committee with only weeks to spare, the celebration walked a tightrope of cancelation and liability. According to people who worked on the event, there wasn’t enough time to get schedules out or vendors lined up. However, the community responded to the possible cancelation of their beloved holiday celebration with determination.

No one was more concerned by these issues than Suzanne Reifsnyder, who, alongside her family, took over the Labor Day celebration and has been involved in the holiday for as long as it’s been held in Pioche. According to Reifsnyder, the event’s history began as a sort of employee appreciation day for the mining companies. Their workers would have the chance to spend time with their families and have a fun weekend. That family-oriented ideal has started to wane a bit, but this year Reifsnyder says it was a “celebration of our community.” 

And the community responded. Volunteers jumped at the chance to work on different activities throughout the weekend, from the horseshoe tournament to the trap shoot, and while this year’s schedule was missing a few key events, there was still plenty of fun to be had. One small hiccup was a smaller softball tournament than usual, which didn’t seem to go over well with some of the teams from Las Vegas, but protecting the community was still a major concern. The committee wanted people to come to Pioche, but they didn’t want to flood the town like in previous years.

Despite these limitations, there was still a considerable increase in activity, and Reifsnyder estimates that they had anywhere from one half to three- quarters of their usual visitors, and with them came funding for both businesses and future Labor Day celebrations. The shirts, which had been ordered before the celebration was originally canceled, were sold out over the weekend, and according to Reifsnyder, the only place where they really lost money was on the $8,000 fireworks display, which were described as “spectacular.”

“I’m just glad it’s over,” a very exhausted Reifsnyder admits, “and I’m looking forward to two weeks from now to make sure everyone’s healthy.”

Despite the issues that would have kept Pioche from celebrating its traditions, the town persevered. Like a button sold during the celebration by Shannon Hoolihan-Wilcox says, “You can’t kill Labor Day.”

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