By Owen Boss
Staff Writer
October will feature a weekend of fun and festivities thanks to the Friends of the Westhampton Public Library, who are inviting all area residents to attend Westhampton's annual Fall Festival and the grand opening of the town's new library.
This year's celebration begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 16, when the group offers its first-ever Harvest Home Tour - an opportunity for Valley residents to check out six of the oldest and most historic homes in Westhampton.
"We had a new member join the Friends of the Library and she had participated in something like this at an event in another town," said the organization's president, Eutheicia Hancewicz, speaking about the home tour. "The rest of us all thought it was a great idea and we told her to go ahead and plan it."
With the purchase of a ticket, Hancewicz said each participant will be given a map marked with the addresses of the six homes they can visit until 3 p.m.
"Once they buy their ticket, the tour is completely self-guided," Hancewicz said.
Tickets for the tour are available at the Westhampton Public Library, Outlook Farm, Intervale Farm, Strawbale Cafe and North Country Gardens. Tickets are $10 in advance and $12 on the day of the tour.
Starting at noon on Sunday, the town's Fall Festival will begin, which will also mark the grand opening of the town's new library.
Among the events offered at the all-day celebration, Hancewicz said, will be a 5K road race, squash tossing with a trebuchet, a large catapult used in medieval times, a petting zoo, cider pressing, an antique tractor demonstration, Indian corn shucking, steeple tours, an oxen demonstration, a woodsmen's demonstration, a giant pumpkin contest and live music.
Throughout the festival, which will be held in the center of town behind the new library, Hancewicz said tours of the new building will be offered and a community meal will be served for a suggested donation of $5.
Hancewicz said the building's newly renovated, tiered backyard will offer residents a place to sit and relax while they wait for this year's bonfire and sing-along, which marks the end of the celebration.
"We sent an invitation out to anyone who has ever made a donation to the library, which is about 400 people," Hancewicz said. "So we expect a pretty good crowd."
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Garlic Fest
Grown in Westhampton, a local gardening club, invites area residents to participate in "Garlic Fest," slated to take place Oct. 25 at 7 p.m. at the Easthampton Road home of former professional chef Tom Martin.
"Tom has a big enough kitchen where the whole town is invited," said group member Kurt Heidinger. "He is going to be preparing outrageously yummy garlic treats for everyone, while the folks who grow garlic in town will be showing off their bulbs and describing the different kinds of garlic."
Martin, who cooked in restaurants in Northampton and Boston, said he plans on showing people at least three different ways to make garlic bread.
"Then I am going to show them some of my favorite ingredients to pair with garlic," he said. "I'll probably cook a protein side, a meat and a vegetable and then show people how to pair garlic with some of my favorite foods."
As part of Grown in Westhampton's goal of bringing together local farmers, gardeners and amateur cooks, Heidinger said the event, which is free, will also feature a presentation on how best to cultivate garlic locally.
"Everyone will have a chance to taste the raw garlic, and we will get into how to feed it, harvest it and dry it at home," Heidinger said.
For information, call Heidinger at 527-9092.
Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com
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