Antrim’s biggest event of the year is back this weekend and there’s plenty of family fun planned. The 17th annual Home and Harvest Festival will run Friday, Sept. 17 and Saturday, Sept. 18 with tons of free, kid-friendly activities and events on the schedule.
Rick Davis started the festival in 2003, six years after moving to Antrim. After witnessing the town come alive in 2000 to celebrate the turn of the century, Davis said he missed the excitement and the way he knew the community could come together in the following years was to put together a town event. He added that he was “quite involved in Peterborough Days,” so when he proposed the idea of an Antrim Festival to the town he “used that as a role model.” Originally the festival was only one day, but as the celebration grew events spilled over to Friday evening.
“Each year it got better,” Davis said.
Volunteers organize the events at the Home and Harvest Festival and Davis spends the year raising money to ensure that activities are free for kids. He said keeping things free and kid-friendly is essential to “make sure kids get out and families have fun,” Davis said. The parade, starting at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, is the biggest attraction of the weekend and includes everything from local business floats and fire trucks to horses and Batman in his Batmobile.
There will also be a light saber duel and a new corn hole tournament Friday evening, a bouncy house set-up, karate and dance performances Saturday followed by free music by Great Groove Theory at 5 p.m. The annual fireworks show put on by Atlas Fireworks will start at 8 p.m. and will end the Festival at Tenney Farm.
Davis said he expects anticipation for the celebration to be high this year since it was canceled last year due to safety concerns amid the coronavirus pandemic. The weekend’s activities are all outdoors, and the shuttle bus has been canceled on Saturday to limit potential virus spread. There will be parking available.
“It’s amazing how many people who used to live in Antrim come back for (the weekend),” Davis said.
Davis emphasized that sponsors and volunteers make the festival happen, and quoted the motto for the event: “Nothing like it.”
Rain dates for the event are scheduled for Sept. 24 and 25. For more information about the Antrim Home and Harvest Festival, visit the event’s Facebook page.