Broken Hearts Festival celebrates Valentine's Day with bones and oddities

Wichita event features vendors selling unique, macabre items to create a community space

Published on Feb. 15, 2026

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The Broken Hearts Festival in Wichita, Kansas celebrated Valentine's Day with a market featuring vendors selling bones, oddities, and other unconventional items. Organized by Ghoulish Gatherings, the event aimed to create a space for people to find community around shared interests in the macabre and unusual.

Why it matters

The Broken Hearts Festival represents a growing trend of alternative Valentine's Day celebrations that move away from traditional romantic tropes and instead embrace more niche interests and subcultures. These types of events provide an outlet for people who may not connect with mainstream Valentine's Day celebrations.

The details

The Broken Hearts Festival featured a variety of vendors selling items you wouldn't normally see at a traditional market, such as bones and other oddities. Organizers say the goal of the event is not just about selling items, but creating a space where people can find community based around shared interests in the macabre and unusual.

  • The Broken Hearts Festival took place on Valentine's Day (February 14, 2026).
  • Ghoulish Gatherings, the organizers of the Broken Hearts Festival, host markets every other month.
  • The next Ghoulish Gatherings event is scheduled for April 11, 2026 at Nomar International Market.

The players

Ghoulish Gatherings

The organizers of the Broken Hearts Festival, a group that hosts markets featuring vendors selling bones, oddities, and other unconventional items every other month.

Koji Liby

One of the organizers of the Broken Hearts Festival, who expressed the complex emotions and sense of community the event aims to foster.

James Deckard

Another organizer of the Broken Hearts Festival, who discussed the significant amount of work that goes into preparing for the event.

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What they’re saying

“I feel like there's so many emotions that I feel it's hard to pick just one for like, what that feeling is. But it's very nice.”

— Koji Liby, Organizer (KWCH)

“There's pride, relief, happiness. I think a lot of it is like, a lot of prep that goes into this. There's a lot of work that goes into it.”

— James Deckard, Organizer (KWCH)

What’s next

Ghoulish Gatherings will host their next market event on April 11, 2026 at Nomar International Market.

The takeaway

The Broken Hearts Festival demonstrates the growing demand for alternative Valentine's Day celebrations that cater to niche interests and subcultures, providing a sense of community for those who may not connect with mainstream romantic tropes.