By Adam Krebs
editor@themonroetimes.com
MONROE — Local Green County Cheese Days organizers set themselves a big goal for this year’s event, which was held last weekend, Sept. 20-22. The challenge was to break the Guinness Book of World Record mark for the largest polka gathering in history.
The previous mark was 802 dancers, set in Germany in 2013. On Saturday in Monroe, more than 4,000 people registered for the event, and when DJ Shotski (Stacy Harbaugh of Madison) played a series of polka hits just after 2 p.m., the streets surrounding the historic downtown square were jam-packed with dancers and spectators alike.
The new record was set 30 years after Wisconsin declared polka the official state dance, and 110 years after the first “Cheese Day” festival was held in Monroe.
Representatives from the Guinness Book of World Records were on hand for the event. Anyone was allowed to polka, and they could have been anywhere around the block — in a tent, catching some shade under a tree, or waiting in a line to grab some food, like cheese curds.
Those that registered beforehand received a commemorative button or sticker while supplies lasted. Once the official record-breaking dance attempt began, the members of this year’s Cheese Days Royalty were on the southwestern stage, while DJ Shotski was surrounded by organizers on the Martha Bernet Main Stage on the south side. Confetti shot off into the air to celebrate the quirky, prideful achievement.
The large crowd fought off temperatures into the mid-80-degrees mark. The higher-than usual temperatures for this time of the season — along with dehydration issues — kept local first responders busy all day. Green County EMS took more than 30 calls.
Rain and thunderstorms descended upon Monroe hours later. The threat of storms was too much for organizers to take on the following day, so they made the careful — and heart-wrenching — decision to cancel the Swiss Colony Parade, which brings in tens of thousands of spectators and participants from across the country.
Food, drinks, music and more followed stayed on schedule at the square, however, but cleanup began for many of the booths and tents before the sun set on Sept. 22.
The festival happens on the third weekend of September every even year. The next Green County Cheese Days will take place Sept. 18-20, 2026.