The festival is a showcase for
turn-of-the-century arts and crafts. This year almost 70 exhibitors and
vendors will feature crafts and skills like candlemaking, woodturning,
lye soap making, knife making and quilting. Herbalist’s will share
their knowledge. Instrument makers will exhibit their work. Quilters
will show their best.
The courtyard of the Forest Heritage
Center is a haven for the children. Storytellers spin their yarns, a
petting zoo offers up-close and personal encounters with furry
critters. The children’s activity area will offer kids the opportunity
to create a puppet show with their imagination and their own handmade
paper puppets.
The twang of banjos, the wail of the
fiddles and the ring of the dulcimer strings accompany all this. Four
of the country’s best folk musicians will be featured on an outdoor
stage throughout the three-day festival.There will be free Mountain
Dulcimer workshops offered each day in the courtyard. Folks are invited
to bring their own dulcimers or try their hand on the dulcimers
provided by instructors Keith and Darlene Vanderbosh.
The always-outstanding food at the
Beavers Bend Folk Festival & Craft Show takes a sweet turn this
year. Food vendors are offering pork-o-bobs, patty melts, chicken
tacos, as well as smoked turkey legs and wrap sandwiches. Back by
popular demand are Indian tacos, cowboy tacos, and burgers. Long-time
Festival favorites like kettle korn, corn dogs and funnel cakes will
also tempt visitors. Wash it all down with fresh apple cider or
sarsaparilla. The festival is a food-lovers paradise!
Mother Nature should be providing quite
a show of her own during the weekend. Fall colors should be peaking and
park guests can also enjoy the scheduled Beavers Bend Resort
activities, like nature center programs, hayrides and train rides.
The Beavers Bend Folk Festival &
Craft Show is made possible by the Forest Heritage Center Advisory
Board, the Oklahoma Arts Council, Oklahoma Department of Agriculture,
Food and Forestry, the McCurtain County Tourism Authority and the
Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department. Festival hours are from 9
a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday.
For more information, contact the Forest Heritage Center at Beavers Bend Resort Park at (580)494-6497, email fhc@beaversbend.com or visit www.beaversbend.com.