The Festival of Nations

Zoey Hunter

September 9th, 2026

The Festival of Nations is an annual celebration of diversity and unique culture that takes place at the end of August at Tower Grove Park in St. Louis. This year was rumored to be the biggest yet, with over 80 countries being represented through various vendors, stage performances, and interactive experiences. On top of that, attending the Festival of Nations is a great extra credit opportunity that’s been offered by foreign language classes at Waterloo High School for about 12 years. The Festival is considered to be a wonderful learning opportunity for foreign language students, and many take the time to go every year. The Festival was described as a great chance for students to get a taste of a wide variety of cultures. Senora Renee Koeneman, the Foreign Language department chair and one of Waterloo High School’s Spanish teachers, expressed concern for the lack of diversity in Waterloo. She stated that, “There are so many other cultures than we see here, like Mexican or Italian, to offer to our students, and this [The Festival of Nations] is the perfect opportunity that they can get little bits of multiple cultures, all in one day, in one spot.” She also stated that she believed going to the Festival can help with skills learned in the classroom. Actually experiencing a bit of the culture, even just for a day, is better in her opinion than just talking about it in class, and hearing native speakers can help listening skills with native pronunciation and fast talking speeds.Outside of the classroom, the Festival of Nations is simply considered a fun time. According to Senorá Renee Koeneman, many former foreign language students continue to attend the festival annually. She says that it's only extra credit in order to give students that initial push into going, and then usually it becomes part of their annual routine. Many families have reached out to thank her for teaching them about the Festival and allowing them to go. In her words, “People don’t go there for class; people go there because they enjoy the celebration,” and that sentiment shows clearly.

Meet the Author

Zoey Hunter

Zoey Hunter is a sophomore at Waterloo High School participating in her first year of journalism. Her decision to join journalism was fueled by her love of reading and writing, desire for creative expression, hope to better her writing skills, and to become more involved in her school. Zoey is interested in reviewing, critiquing, or diving into various forms of media, discussing student politics, and writing ethics-based or deep-thinking articles. Zoey brings qualities like her friendliness and humor, but also a healthy amount of pragmatism and sometimes blunt honesty. Outside of journalism, Zoey is active in Drama, Speech and Debate, and Tennis. Zoey is a big fan of horror and takes heavy interest in things that are strange or unusual. Zoey also just so happens to be the self-appointed #1 Rick and Morty fan located within the Central Finite Curve. Ad astra per aspera -- through hardships to the stars!

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