Alderson Main Street Sponsored Fall Festival on the Bridge on October 15th.
It was a bright, crisp autumn day for the first Fall Festival on the Bridge sponsored by Alderson Main Street (AMS), a community promotion organization in Alderson, West Virginia. What began as a cool morning warmed up to be an inviting afternoon for vendors and visitors alike. It was the first community festival since the pandemic shutdown, and it was a welcome opportunity to get out and mingle.
Local musicians, artisans, and cooks offered their self-made products and services to pedestrians. There was a selection of unique vendors, and this was done with purpose.
Sonya Shafer, vendor coordinator, invited vendors to ensure quality and variety. She said, “I really went through and vetted. The difference for this festival is that all the items need to be handmade, so it’s local makers, artisans. And I really wanted to select vendors that were different to make sure that we didn’t have several of the same type.” Shafer is also a vendor and displayed her tie-dyed creations under the title of “Greenbrier Valley Dyes”.
There was also a farmer’s market near the visitor’s center and musicians playing in the gazebo beside the river. Don Sutherland, AMS Secretary, said he was pleased with the day’s success and the work Sonya had done. He and his wife moved to the area a year ago and feel they couldn’t have picked a better place to enjoy retirement in the mountains. He also felt that being new allows him to freely work without “institutional memory”.
Sutherland also spoke of the next event that’s already being planned. “We do our kind of Christmas events, the big Christmas parade and tea over at the Victorian Inn. We’re going to do Santa at the train depot.” Sutherland continued, “People should watch Alderson Main Street Facebook page, and we’ll have the whole schedule out for that, too.”
Alderson Main Street is a volunteer lead organization that works in cooperation with the Town of Alderson. In addition to their social media presence, they also have a website, aldersonmainstreet.com
