This year’s Guinea Jubilee is in a “transition period” as the festival gears up to its big 40th anniversary next year. This year’s 39th annual festival will kick off Friday from 3-10 p.m. on the grounds of the Abingdon Ruritan Club, Bena, and will continue Saturday from 7:30 a.m. until 9:15 p.m.

Tara Thomas, who co-chairs the festival’s committee alongside her husband Brook, was in awe that the Guinea Jubilee is close to celebrating four decades of being a major part of the community. “Wow—the 39th annual festival—it’s very, very hard to believe,” she said.

For the first time, the Guinea Heritage Association will have the old Buck’s Store open through the course of the festival. The store, which has undergone major renovations recently, will include merchandise on its shelves and will offer a number of commemorative items for sale reflecting Guinea heritage. “They’re trying to get Buck’s back to being...