Mountain Valor Fest set for September
Mountain Valor Veteran Services will host Mountain Valor Fest 2026 on Saturday, Sept. 12, at Crooked Mountain Campground in Floyd.
Admission is free, and gates open at noon.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Virginia Department of Veterans Services will both have representatives on site, offering benefits counseling, enrollment assistance and resource navigation to veterans and their families. More than three dozen federal, state and local community agencies are expected to participate.
“Most of the veterans we serve have never had someone sit down with them and walk through what they’ve earned,” said Katt Whittenberger, a 21-year Navy veteran and the organization’s founder and executive director. “That’s what this event is — we bring the resources to them, at no cost, in their own community.”
The event will feature two live acts. Dr. Phil’s Kimo Therapy, a Roanoke-based band rooted in Appalachian punk, rockabilly and blues, will perform alongside Glam’r Kiti, an 80s rock tribute act. A 5:30 p.m. remembrance ceremony will honor those lost on Sept. 11, 2001, and through the wars that followed.
Mountain Valor Fest also includes food trucks, live music, a kid zone, military displays, artisan and retail vendors, and community resource exhibits. Federal and state agencies will be joined by local organizations providing services that often fill gaps traditional veteran support systems miss. Additional vendor and exhibitor space remains available for both resource providers and vendors. BAE Systems returns as primary festival sponsor for the third consecutive year. Blue Cross Blue Shield is the Kid Zone sponsor.
Mountain Valor Veteran Services serves veterans of all generations, their families, survivors and caregivers across seven rural Southwest Virginia counties: Floyd, Montgomery, Pulaski, Franklin, Carroll, Patrick and Wythe. Since its founding in 2024, the organization has reached more than 3,000 veterans, family members, survivors and caregivers, with 1,200 served in person. The nonprofit was named 2025 Nonprofit of the Year by the Floyd County Chamber of Commerce.
“Rural veterans face barriers that veterans near major metro areas don’t,” Whittenberger said. “We skew older, less reliant on digital communications, and are significantly more isolated. Distance and fewer resources means veterans are incredibly disconnected. This event closes that gap for one day — and we keep building from there.”
Mountain Valor Fest 2026 is free and open to all. The event is accessible for those with mobility limitations.
