By Kim Rakes
The Town of Stuart’s 16th Annual Strawberry Festival will be held Saturday, May 18 in Uptown Stuart. This family friendly festival is a free, rain or shine event with live music, local produce, delicious food, homemade crafts, inflatables and more.
The festival starts at 10 a.m., and is a one stop spot to load up on strawberry goods, with Christie Mabe Rogers of Mabe’s Berry Farm on site with buckets full of freshly picked strawberries. Stuart United Methodist Church will offer mouth-watering strawberry shortcake for sale and Clark Gas & Oil will be selling their famous homemade, tractor-churned strawberry ice cream.
Main Street will be lined with vendors offering homemade jams and jellies, bath and body products, and other one-of-a-kind artisan pieces. Jewelry, candles, birdhouses and other crafts also will be available. No festival is complete without funnel cakes and kettle corn, so come ready to indulge. Barbecue, chicken, fish and steak sandwiches will also be available for those looking to fill up for lunch. Among the food vendors, Mountain Home Mason Lodge #263 will be on site selling barbecue combos and whole Boston butts to benefit various community projects.
Bring a chair and enjoy the live music. Next Chapter will kick things off at 11 a.m. Marcie Horne will take the stage at 1 p.m. and The Band Confuzion will close out the day at 2 p.m.
UpTown Farmhouse, a curated general store on Main Street, will also be open. The store is filled with unique antiques, farmhouse wares, and trendy shirts, totes and jewelry. Stop in and enjoy some Homestead Creamery ice cream and grab some of their old-fashioned candy by the pound.
Outdoor Entertainment LLC will be bringing inflatables for the children. For $7, children can jump all day.
Be sure to stop by all the tents and find out about various organizations in the community. From the local Mothers of Preschoolers group hosted at Grace Baptist Church to other clubs, churches and businesses, the fest is a great place to meet neighbors and learn about different happenings
The Town of Stuart’s 16th Annual Strawberry Festival is being held Saturday, May 18th in Uptown Stuart. This family friendly festival is a free, rain or shine event with live music, local produce, delicious food, homemade crafts, inflatables and more.
