Sweet and Fruity Fun

The word “wonderful” was a common thread among discussions with visitors and vendors at the Wesley United Methodist Church Strawberry Festival and Arts and Crafts Show.  

Held recently at the church’s South Barfield Drive campus, the festival is a fundraiser for Camp Able. The camp provides fun activities for special needs youths and adults. Over five days, they experience a multitude of daytime activities, such as movies, golfing and salon trips, arts and crafts, scuba diving, and other water-related activities. Evenings are occupied by activities like dances, a luau, a carnival, and a talent show.  

Strawberry-themed activities, food, and of course, a broad range of arts and crafts and other vendors are the festival’s calling card. Stands offering hot sauces, slushy mixes, artisan peanut butters, jewelry, and purses were intermingled with the handiwork of painters, potters, and other visual artists. There was a replacement window and door specialist, an underwater lighting stand and even a purveyor of all-purpose metal polish.  

Snowbird Judy Morgan attends the festival with regularity.  

“This festival is great,” said the retired assistant district attorney for Philadelphia, all decked out in the gear of the Super Bowl-winning Eagles. “The people here are so lovely. And I love this town. Everything here is wonderful.” 

Catherine Kendrick of Estero paused while chatting with visitors to her pottery stand to praise the festival.  

“This is my first time here, but I'll be coming back,” she said on the event’s final day. “I’ve really enjoyed it. It’s a really nice venue, and they're really sweet to us. They're very kind, and they take care of us here.” 

Allyson Richards was a volunteer at the Strawberry Stand Benefiting Camp Able, where the fruit, in a variety of forms, was in generous supply and extremely popular. 

“It seems like a lot of people love the pies and the crumble and the fresh strawberries,” she said. “It's a wonderful thing (event), and they give it all to Camp Able. That is a joy to be part of.”