the montrose blueberry festival

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

we have this every summer, late in July very early in August (concepts of time and soace are not kitty strong suits ), when the blueberries are coming on strong and sweet.

 

we have other festivals, the apple fest, the harvest fest, the wine and chocolate.... the Santa roll :) whole bunch of kids roll a life size Santa mold fresh poured full of tempered melted chocolate back and forth up and down the hills, making the chocolate Santa that decorates Leopold's chocolates until it's smashed to bits and parceled out after Christmas. the July fourth parade, of course, when 20K+ tourists choke my little town to swelter in the midsummer heat... children used to dash among the floats for thrown candy but... the inevitable ended that. still, they march and beard me in my den afraid to leave until they've gone.... escaping into the night to rest on the dark lawn drinking with friends watching the fireworks over the lake.

 

but the definitive... seminal festival... is the blueberry.

 

we're in the right spot to grow blueberries, though the food isn't particularly good. little tip - blueberry pizza. just say no.

 

the food highlights are the blueberry ice cream, pancakes, waffles, and the fresh picked pints. the ladies who bake the pies do well enough but I do better.

 

the festival isn't really about the blueberries. funny thing... it's about the historical society, the library, the high school band... and the kids.

 

we have civil war recreations... no, not battles, but how they made coffee and cooked and lived.

 

we have a book sale you could die for... ppl donate for months and what the library doesn't need is sold. a town of maybe 5K ppl selling thousands upon thousands of books.

 

the pie sales, yum... overpriced but good cause.

 

the white elephant sales, wherein we exchange the crap collecting dust in our basements for other ppls dusty crap.

 

the hula show... rhythm less children and moms pale and half naked shaking it on the green... so sweet...

 

the very lame lunch tent where I volunteer to help sell the very mediocre grub to support the very very good high school band.... my job is getting Tweens to work... so... my job is doing their work cause that's not an achievable goal. but... ppl come back to the tent again and again, hungry and lonely for a smiling, friendly local face to ask them about their golf caps, their kids, their lives, their gardens... the weather... the likelihood that someone will run to fetch more relish...

 

the very sweet litters of kittens and puppies needing and surely finding homes. the dogs and cats are as welcome here as the humans. it's that kinda own.

 

I think most of all, the festival is about the kids. so many kids...

 

there's a free bouncy castle, no limits, bounce all day. there are fire trucks to explore. amateur face painting and wriggly toddlers making it difficult but soooo cute. craft tables run by junior high school kids, helping littles make jewelry and paintings and ... everything. relay games and races where the older ones help the littles cheat, or at least plop them back into the sandals they inevitably run themselves you of, Hannah Barbera style... target toss, play fishing in the fountain... obstacle courses...

 

so many silly little games. the prizes are what you'd find in a Cracker Jack box. the best prize is a ice cream cone, and it's so sweet to see the big bothers and sisses hoard those and give them to their baby sibs.

 

I'm not wiring about this to make you want to come here. we do a nice profit and... I don't need to flip any more burgers for the band :).

 

I'm writing this because you have something like this going on near where you live. something that supports your own community, that's fun... and that needs you.

 

so I hope you'll look for it and bring some kids :).

 

(and puppies and kittens.)

 

I don't have my own kids, but I sort of have a part of the whole town's.

 

and when I'm done playing and helping and cooking and cleaning up... I get to go back home and rest in a quiet place.

 

I highly recommend it.

Edited June 20, 2013 by cindy

[blank]

This sounds absolutely wonderful Cindy, sounds like one of the benefits from smaller towns is the stronger sense of community. I live in quite a big city (which I love) and we have a few festivals but it's the type that you go to with your friends and watch the entertainment.

 

Yours' sounds a lot more interactive, more about the community which is lovely.

 

How long has this been going on?

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

good question :)

 

I just found out, lol... 1980

 

http://www.susqcolibrary.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=110&Itemid=86

[BridMorgan]

Cindy - 4 (MG special) 1 for reply

Blank - 1

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

thank you, lady brid :)