Waterfest, Excelsior Springs’ biggest festival, marks its 40th anniversary with a variety of events, food and fun. The much anticipated event begins today and continues through Saturday. From its modest beginnings and rough patches through the decades, the festival has encountered challenges, grown and prevailed to become an integral part of the town’s history. The buzz began June 21, 1981, with a Daily Standard newspaper article by Claudia Crump announcing a new celebration would be held in September in downtown. The article said the inspiration came from a centennial celebration hosted by the Excelsior Springs Area Chamber of Commerce two years prior. Don Hoagland, the chamber’s acting executive director in 1981, told Crump the past celebration was such a success that the chamber decided to sponsor an annual festival, and it would be called Waterfest. The Waterfest name was inspired by the area’s mineral water wells which played a key role in the development of Excelsior…