When the days start to get slightly shorter and the occasional autumn breeze whips through the hot, humid air, we think not about the end of summer but rather the return of the Heath Fair! The 103rd Heath Fair is this Saturday, August 21st and Sunday, August 22nd and it’s promised to be the G.O.A.T. (Greatest of All Times!). These 2 days will be packed with agricultural events, live music, food, crafts, and more!

A day at the Heath Fair is always exciting for all ages. Some of the events and exhibits you’ll see are the Horse Draw, Truck Pull, Master Gardener Tent, Horse Gymkhana, Antique Tractor Pull, and Classic Car Cruise, just to name a few. In between events, you can enjoy tasty food and drink at the Beer Tent, the Heath Firefighters Association Chicken BBQ, and other local vendors. Then dance it off while listening to the live music of Meadows Brothers, Opal Canyon, The Wildcat O’Halloran Band, and more. Check out the full schedule events of here.

You can purchase your tickets in advance online here or in person at Avery’s General Store in Charlemont, Hager’s Farm Market in Shelburne and the Shelburne Falls and Greenfield branches of the Greenfield Cooperative Bank. Otherwise you can purchase them at the fair, just remember there are no ATMs and no cell service out in the country.

See you at the Fair!

For more information, visit heathfair.org. Check out the video below to get you excited the Heath Fair: 

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For more information about community happenings and real estate news visit Wanda's Blog at www.wandamooney.com/blog. 

The Franklin County Fairgrounds will host a festive display of lights this holiday season to spread cheer to the community and raise funds for three organizations. They are working alongside Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Franklin County and the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office Regional Dog Shelter to organize a light display lasting three weekends. Over 30 groups from the community of 4 people or less are putting together the various light displays and are competing for a cash prize of $1000. We have two weekends left, December 4-6, and December 11-13, for the public to drive through the fairgrounds and enjoy the light display. 

Each car is asked to donate a minimum of $5 and each night one of the three organizations will receive 100% of the proceeds. These local non-profits have been hit hard by Covid-19 due to canceling events to stay safe and this creative fundraiser is a way to recover some of those funds and spread joy to the local community. 

For more information about this event, visit the Franklin County Fairgrounds on Facebook!

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For more information about community happenings and real estate news visit Wanda's Blog at www.wandamooney.com/blog.

The 2020 Crafts of Colrain Open Studio Tour has moved online! This weekend, November 14 and 15, from 10 am to 5 pm, most artists are offering 10% off when you shop their online store (using discount code: colrain10). There will be many new items offered for the first time this weekend. Plus, view videos about the artists on the Crafts of Colrain website to tour their studios virtually. 

Colrain, MA is a scenic town, just below the VT state line. Its expansive area of forests, streams, and farms has made it a desirable place for artists and creative people to live and work. They draw inspiration from the town's natural beauty to bring their art alive and offer it to the community. 

Crafts of Colrain is an annual event which usually brings the opportunity for these tucked-away artists to open their doors to the community. The artists normally spend the weekend hosting workshops, giving tours of their space, and then selling their products. Support these artists and this wonderful community event so that it may happen again next year, hopefully in person! 

View videos of the artist and links to their online stores at CraftsofColrain.com/artists.

(Photos source: craftsofcolrain.com)

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For more information about community happenings and real estate news visit Wanda's Blog at www.wandamooney.com/blog.

This Saturday and Sunday, September 21 and 22, check out the Old Deerfield Fall Craft Fair. Held on the lush and beautiful grounds surrounding Memorial Hall Museum in Deerfield, MA, the Fall Craft Fair features 150 artisan craft booths from all over the area. You will find every kind of craft from fiber to pottery to jewelry and more! Plus, specialty food offerings, live music, and free craft activities for all ages, provided by Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association. You can also stop by the Yankee Candle booth, one of the festival’s long-time sponsors, to find beeswax candles, enter to win a raffle prize, and get a $20 off coupon. 

The craft fair hours are Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm and Sunday 10 am to 4 pm. Admission is $7 for adults and children 12 and under are free. Visit www.deerfield-craft.org for more information and to view the list of crafters. 

The Heath Fair is one of the few country fairs still around that stays true to its agricultural roots. For over 100 years, it has offered events such as the ox draw, sheep shows, and various trade demonstrations to teach the community about agriculture in an engaging way. Every year the residents of Heath and visitors from surrounding towns look forward to this end of summer event. This year, the 102nd Heath Fair will take place this weekend, Friday evening, August 16th, and all day Saturday and Sunday, August 17th and 18th. 

It is truly incredible to see how a large event like this with a variety of activities comes together in such an organized way. It is because of the commitment of volunteers who run each of the events that the Heath Fair is so successful. This year’s lineup of events include the antique tractor pull, rabbit show, ADGA sanctioned senior goat show, ox draw, truck pull, and adult sheep show and more. Bring the kids because there will be so much for them to do too like the zucchini races, wagon rides, kids garden tractor pull, demonstrations, and the parade! 

Make sure you come hungry because there will be plenty to eat! Join the organized meals such as the Church Ladies Ham and Bean Supper at 5:30 pm on Friday, the Heath Firefighters Association BBQ on both Saturday and Sunday, or the Blueberry Pancake Breakfast on Sunday morning. There will also be a great group of vendors selling food at the lower food booth and upper food booth.

A country fair is not complete without music and this year’s artist lineup is spectacular. On Friday night, check out Mamma’s Marmalade, a Northampton-based newgrass band and then join in on the square dancing, called by Doug Wilkins. On Saturday at 10 am, Under the Tree Music Company will perform a kids show. Then throughout the day, there will be musical performances by Uncles of the Pioneers, Lonesome Brothers, Josh LeVangie and the Pistoleros, and Deadgrass. On Sunday, check out the Shelburne Falls Military Band at 11:30 am and the Gaslight Tinkers at 1:30 pm. At 3:30 pm, there will be a special performance, Amazing Magic Show for All Ages with Damian Odess Gillett.

For the full schedule of events, visit heathfair.org. The Heath Fair is presented by the Heath Agricultural Society. Admission is only $10 or $8 for seniors and free for children 10 and under. Parking is free. See you at the Heath Fair!

Photo credit: Heathfair.org

Do you want to be transported to medieval times? This weekend you can at the Mutton and Mead Medieval Festival in Montague, Massachusetts. Started in 2011, the Mutton and Mead Festival is a highly anticipated annual event, where medieval England comes alive in Western Massachusetts. Once a year, the fictitious Mutton and Mead Tavern hosts their town’s summer festival and festival goers are brought back to the 13th century.

Children and adults alike are bound to find something that intrigues them at the Mutton and Mead Festival. The schedule is filled with events for Saturday and Sunday, June 15 and 16 from 10 am to 6:30 pm. See the joust where brave knights on horseback compete on the field of honor. Play games of skill and shoot a round of archery. Meet medieval characters such as Robin Hood and Maiden Marion. Explore the enchanted forest. Plus, enjoy many more comedy, stunt, and Shakespeare acts. View the full lineup here.

Local vendors from around the valley will be there as well, selling artisanal crafts, costumes, art, body products, tarot card readings, and more. Come hungry because there will also be lots of food for sale, and of course ales and mead too. See the full list of vendors here.  

The Mutton and Mead Festival is a project by the Knighten Guild. For directions to the festival, to purchase tickets, and for more details, visit their website.

For a long time, cider has been the traditional drink of New England. Right here in Franklin County, we are lucky to be surrounded by wonderful orchards and cideries, who make this delicious fall drink. For 24 years, Franklin County has celebrated cider with their Annual CiderDays. This 3-day event, always occurring on the first full weekend [...]

As summer winds down, fairs and festivals are popping up all over Western Mass. Last weekend, hundreds came out for the 101st Heath Fair. This coming weekend marks the 150th Cummington Fair in Cummington, MA. The Fair was started in 1868 but was initiated in 1883 as the Hillside Agricultural Society. Today, the Cummington Fair remains true [...]

The Heath Fair is one of the few country fairs still around that stays true to its agricultural roots. For over 100 years, it has offered events such as the ox draw, sheep shows, and various trade demonstrations to teach the community about agriculture in an engaging way. Every year the residents of Heath and visitors from surrounding towns look forward to this end of summer event. This year, the 101st Heath Fair will take place this weekend, Friday, August 17th to Sunday, August 19th.

It is truly incredible to see how a large event like this with a variety of activities comes together in such an organized way. It is because of the commitment of volunteers who run each of the events that the Heath Fair is so successful. This year’s lineup of events include the antique tractor pull, rabbit show, goat show, horse draw, truck pull, and sheep show. Bring the kids because there will be so much for them to do too like the zucchini races, wagon rides, demonstrations, and the parade!

Make sure you come hungry because there will be plenty to eat! Join the organized meals such as the Church Ladies Ham and Bean Supper on Friday, the Heath Firefighters Association BBQ on both Saturday and Sunday, or the Blueberry Pancake Breakfast on Sunday. There will also be a great group of vendors selling food, including Lucia’s Latin Kitchen, Kailash Kitchen, and of course Hager’s Farm Market’s fried dough and maple cream.

A country fair needs music and this year’s artist lineup is spectacular. On Friday night, check out Upstate Rubdown and then join in on the square dancing, led by Doug Wilkins. On Saturday, the music starts at 11 am with The Uncles of the Pioneers and continues through the day with The Green Sisters, Li’l BeeDee & The Doo-Rites, and The Whiskey Treaty Road Show. On Sunday, the Ageless Waves of Rhythm will kick off the day with their drumming, followed by the Shelburne Falls Military Band, and Banish Misfortune.

For the full schedule of events, visit heathfair.org. The Heath Fair is presented by the Heath Agricultural Society. Admission is only $8 or $6 for seniors and free for children 9 and under. See you at the Heath Fair!

With the holidays being right around the corner, all of the towns in Franklin County are lighting up with holiday festivities and cheer. This weekend in particular, two seasonal events are happening: JingleFest in Downtown Greenfield and A Special Day in Northfield. Support your local community and enjoy either or both of these festive [...]