September 2007

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Festival Features Unique Craft Demos
by Jan Powers

Count the good reasons for attending the Adams County Heritage Festival, scheduled this year for Sunday, September 16, from noon until 5 p.m., at the Gettysburg Recreation Park on Long Lane. This year’s Festival, as well as featuring great ethnic food, outstanding musical entertainment and a full afternoon of children’s activities, offers another incentive to enjoy an afternoon at the 16th annual festival. A number of unique craft demonstrations are planned, involving fabric production, musical instruments, metal casting and glass blowing.

Annette Ehly will demonstrate dyeing fibers with vegetable dyes, while Gail McClusky of Misty Mountain Fiber Workshop will show how fibers are woven into fabric, and Patsy Hartnett will present quilting designs and techniques. Michael Peluso, making his first appearance at the Festival, will demonstrate the delicate art of glassblowing. Joshua Bartash, who uses cuttlebone as a mold for small metal casting, will show off the process by which he makes silver and pewter jewelry. In addition, Tom Jolin will be back to play and construct traditional musical instruments.

This year’s Children’s Activities also promise to be something special. In addition to goats from Caprine Delight Goat Dairy and animals brought by Strawberry Hill, a number of other activities will involve international themes. Young people can make Mexican tissue paper flowers and pencil toppers with international fact cards. Face‑painting and African hair‑braiding will be featured, along with large plywood cut‑outs of boys and girls in traditional costume, great for photo‑ops. At another table, kids can try out folk instruments and decorate kazoos. El Centro will supervise the making of “God’s eyes,” and peace bags will emerge with the help of international scribes.

Without exception, the 2007 Festival music and dance offerings are outstanding. Opening the event will be bagpiper Rodney Yeaple, followed by the seven‑member group Zorzal, with lively music from the Americas. You won’t want to miss the Yong Han Chinese Lion Dance Troupe or Jessica Gondwe singing spirituals and gospel music. Mexican dancers from Generación Diez will again delight festival‑goers, followed by Voxology, offering traditional acoustic folk harmonies. The Festival will end with Touchstone Theatre’s presentation of a special children’s version of Don Quixote.

Of course, some people go to the Festival just to eat, and those folks won’t be disappointed either. Amy’s Thai Cuisine will return, along with Blank’s Country Cooking and Mexican cuisine prepared by Manos Unidas. Soul and Jamaican food will be served by Ann Gilbert and Ken Warsup, while Antietam Dairy will be on hand with ice cream. Rumor has it that Indian food will also be on the menu, should you want to take something home for Sunday night supper.

The Festival officially converges this year with the Unity Coalition, which came into being in the wake of last year's visit by the Ku Klux Klan. The mission of the Heritage Festival is to provide an opportunity for local residents to appreciate the cultures and unity of our area through music, food and the arts. It seems that over the years festival-goers have learned how to do that in a big way!

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