Alas, the Alberta summer is dwindling to its inevitable close. The good news is that a resplendent fall is upon us and that means the Harvest Festival wrap-up party arrives tomorrow.
“I’m not saying that summer is over but fall is definitely in the air!” explained museum director Shari Strachan. “So come in and enjoy the site before the snow flies.”
The annual celebration is put on by Arts and Heritage St. Albert. Tomorrow from noon to 4 p.m., members of the public can pop by 4 Meadowview Dr. for all of the family-friendly fun and sensory delights that they can handle.
Event organizer Suellen Pineau noted that there would be a cornucopia of children’s activities, crafts and games, all of which are related to autumn, the harvest and the importance of the grain elevators to St. Albert’s history and culture.
“It’s a beautiful setting. What a beautiful, natural backdrop it is right there in the middle of St. Albert. There’s a lot of natural beauty there and the historic element is something that people really love.”
“It’s just to come out and enjoy the site again and get that ‘fall feeling,’” Strachan continued. “It really is about the harvest and the history of agriculture in this area and its influence. It still influences us today.”
The festival will feature interpreter-led tours of the site including both the 1906 Brackman Ker Elevator and the 1929 Alberta Wheat Pool Elevator. With live local music courtesy of Innovations Music, attendees can feed oats to sheep, goat and chickens in a fenced-in pen brought by 12 Acres Farm near Westlock.
Children can get their faces painted or have a balloon animal made by Giggles Faces’n’Glitter, and then get their pictures taken in the photo booth. Members of the St. Albert Quilters Guild and Edmonton Weavers Guild will be doing live demonstrations and the Art Gallery of St. Albert has an art activity lined up for those with their own creative impulses.
For more fun, there’s an old-fashioned scavenger hunt where the kids can find four jars, each filled with candies. They can then guess the number of candies and those who have the closest guesses for each jar get to take the goodies home.
Other available edibles include hot buttered corn on the cob for sale by Riverbend Gardens, and two other food tents will offer kettle corn and cotton candy.
The event draws in an average of approximately 700 people but nearly 1,200 attended last year. Many others have had their attentions drawn to the grain elevators to the summer with its popular food truck events. The site has even become a growing destination for private events and weddings, three of which have already been booked for next year.
Strachan is encouraged by the growing relevance of the venue to a broader audience as bigger and better things are in store.
“I don’t know how many times I hear, ‘wow, I’ve driven by here how many times?’ or ‘I didn’t even realize it was open’ or ‘wow, there’s a lot on this site’ or ‘could we bring a picnic?’ People are becoming more aware of the fact that it’s accessible to our community. That’s what it’s there for.”
“We’re working on expanding that. We’ve got plans. Come back next year. There’s going to be new things.”
Those plans involve opening the heritage houses just across the dusty road and integrating everything into a larger cultural centre.
“We’re doing it for our community so they have a bigger place and outdoor space to use and enjoy. It’s getting exciting!”
The Harvest Festival marks the last day that the grain elevators are open to the public for 2015. Admission is free but donations to Arts and Heritage St. Albert are encouraged. There will also be a bin for people to make donations of non-perishable food items to the St. Albert Food Bank.
Call the museum at 780-459-1528 or visit www.museeheritage.ca for more information.
