Hot Topics

Record number

Vendors top 170;

features added

to May 10 event

More than 170 vendors have signed up for the 6th annual Boonsboro Green Fest on Saturday, May 10, in Shafer Park, according to Janeen Solberg, vendor coordinator and festival co-chair.

To be eligible, vendors must sell earth-friendly products or advocate for environmental issues or causes. The stated mission of the festival is "to promote conservation, recycling, and sustainable living within the community."

Other scheduled activities are taking shape, including the addition of the Health and Fitness tent, which will feature at least 10 stations set up for health screenings and information distribution by health and fitness professionals.

Plans are also being finalized for the new Wine and Beer Garden, featuring products of local winemakers and brewers. Proceeds from the special tent near the stage area will be donated to the Friends of Shafer Park and dedicated to a new aquatics center planned for the park.

An additional speaker has been added to the lineup of experts in the Speakers' Tent, bringing to six the number of special presentations with topics, including GMOs (genetically manufactured organisms), fracking, green careers, food as medicine for allergies, composting, and bees. The programs will be recorded for posting on YouTube, as were last year's speakers.

Other features scheduled include a recycling drop-off, drive-thru with 25 collection stations, children's activities all day long in the Kids' Zone, live music by local performing artists, and a well-stocked concession pavilion, in addition to at least three trucks serving food and refreshments. Nearly 80 door prizes, donated by the vendors, will be awarded in drawings during breaks between musical acts.

The festival would not be possible without the generous support of nearly 60 sponsoring partners, who have committed monetary and in-kind contributions, according to Barbara Wetzel, the other festival co-chair.

An official event of the Town of Boonsboro, the festival is planned and produced by the all-volunteer, 18-member Boonsboro Green Fest Committee.

On May 10, an additional 150 volunteers will be needed. All volunteers must sign up in advance, by April 28; no walk-ins will be allowed the day of the event, according to volunteer coordinator Kathy Vesely. Students may earn Student Service Learning hours at the festival.

There will also be volunteer opportunities to help with sorting items for the Clothing and Sports Equipment Swaps during the week before the festival at the Community Center in the park.

All volunteers must signup online at www.boonsborogreenfest.com or by contacting Kathy Vesely by mail at PO Box 64, Boonsboro, MD 21713, by April 28.

Green Fest 2014

vendor deadline

fast approaching

More than 150 vendors have registered to participate in the sixth annual Boonsboro Green Fest on Saturday, May 10, in Shafer Park.

A final number will not be available until several days after the March 15 deadline, according to vendor coordinator and festival co-chair Janeen Solberg. "There has been such a flurry of applications as the deadline approaches," she said.

Vendors may make application online by filling out a form and paying the vendor fee via PayPal.

The final vendor deadline was moved up by two weeks this year to give volunteer organizers extra time for final preparations, such as updating the website with all the vendors and sponsors, assigning vendor spaces at the park, and producing the printed brochure, which will include the vendors and major sponsors, speaker and entertainment schedules, and children's activities.

Vendors making application by midnight on March 15 will pay a $40 fee for a 10-foot space. The fee was doubled after the Early Bird Special period expired on March 1. Those requiring access to electricity for their display space, must pay an additional $10. Sign up now.

150 volunteers needed

Volunteers must register by April 28, according to volunteer coordinator Kathy Vesely. All volunteers must sign up in advance; no walk-ins will be allowed the day of the event, she said. Students may earn Student Service Learning hours at the festival.

There are also times during the week preceding the festival where volunteers are needed at the Community Center in the park to sort items for the Clothing and Sports Equipment Swap and Sale. Sorting will take place from 5 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, and from 9 a.m. to noon on Wednesday.

More than 4,000 items were swapped or sold last year. The Swap and Sale is held in Pavilion #1 next to the Community Center parking lot.

Other volunteer opportunities are listed on the Volunteer Registration Form.

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Registration

opens Jan. 1

for '14 vendors

Starting Jan. 1, 2014, prospective Boonsboro Green Fest vendors may begin applying online for the sixth annual Boonsboro Green Fest which will be held in May.

Organizations, businesses and individuals are eligible to be considered as vendors if they sell and promote earth-friendly products or advocate for environmental issues or causes. It is the stated mission of the festival "to promote conservation, recycling, and sustainable living within the community."

The Green Fest will be held rain or shine from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, May 10, 2014 -- the day before Mother's Day -- in the town's Shafer Park.

The final deadline for making application is March 15, 2014. A short, one-page vendor application form is available online at www.boonsborogreenfest.com.

Those filing applications before March 1 will qualify for a lower Early Bird registration fee of $20 for a 10-foot-square space; applications received between March 2 and 15 will be required to pay $40. Vendors requiring electricity for their booths will pay an extra $10 fee.

Registration fees and donations finance the festival which is planned and produced by the all-volunteer Boonsboro Green Fest Committee. There are eight original members who have served on the committee since the first year. On festival day, as many as 150 volunteers will help out.

Committee co-chair Janeen Solberg said the number of vendors will be limited to 160, so she suggests that those who are interested should apply as early as possible.

Last year, there were a total of 160 vendors, nearly double the number at the first Green Fest in 2009. With all the other planned activities, Solberg explained, "160 pretty much maxes out the prime vendor space in the park."

Plans again this year include a large drive-through recycling drop-off area, a Kids' Zone, a speakers' tent, live music and food concessions.

The committee, which has been meeting since October, is planning some added features, but is not ready to announce details at this time, according to Barbara Wetzel, the other co-chair.

Volunteers and sponsors may register online at www.boonsborogreenfest.com.

An Official Event

of the Town of Boonsboro

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