Bethany Family Harvest Festival a brilliant success

It's hard to say what shone brighter at last Saturday's Bethany Family Harvest Festival - was it the sun after a miserable wet Friday of torrential downpours and blustery winds? Was it the vivid produce on display in the farmer's market section? Or was it the smiles on children's faces as they stood in line waiting for their turn to try to master the mechanical bull? It doesn't matter, because much like Disney World, you'd have to look long and hard to find a cranky face at one of the town's happiest events of the year.

The volunteer-run event is the combined effort of the Bethany Recreation Department and the group that formerly organized Bethany Family Day. Last year, the two organizations decided to  join forces and combine Family Day with the Harvest Festival, and in the end, the entire community wins.

For Bethany residents, everything is free; food, games and entertainment. Local businesses sponsor different aspects of the day, then set up their booths and talk a little shop with locals or offer free crafts to the children, who wander the grounds carrying bags for their "swag," collecting up free pens, refrigerator magnets, bumper stickers and the like. Even in a town with "more horses than people," children still want a pony ride, and the petting zoo animals charmed children and adults alike.

It will only get bigger and better, says Janice Howard of Bethany Park and Rec. Next year, look for even more entertainment as well as the return of the horse show!