A Day at the Strawberry Festival

This old boy was eagerly awaiting his strawberry shortcake from the assembly line.^

(Doubleclick on photos for enlargements)

Here's what it's all about.^

... Jason Hall gave a demonstration to his nephew ...^

Mason McClung, who did it his way.^

Linda Webb of the United Way did a mean whipped cream spray.^

Spillage is inevitable, but boy! would I volunteer to clean up!^

Talk about gilding the lilly: chocolate on a ripe strawberry. Too much.^

The crowd was large and hungry.^

Tray after tray after tray of strawberries disappeared in a hurry.^

One bench, two cultures.^

These children (Emma Porterfield, Sarah and Emily Cleveland) tried to catch a fish in all the garbage. A little environmental lesson at the festival.^

Samantha Perez just loves her strawberry shortcake.^

This guy wanted a little peace and quiet for his dessert. I didn't bother him to ask his name.^

These little yappy dogs were raising so much hell that the gal at the right appeared to be offering them her strawberry shortcake before she pulled it back. The dog was not amused.^

And at the end of the day, we know people were there ...^

Roanoke's annual Strawberry Festival, which benefits Community School, has grown from a nice little afternoon of strawberry shortcake in Colonial Plaza to a zoo at Elmwood Park, complete with a variety of vendors and a whole lot of strawberries.

The two-day event is held in conjunction with the Chili Festival, about half a mile away on Salem Avenue, but is considerably more popular these days. The Chili Festival, which at one point was one of Roanoke's most popular festivals, has landed in a parking lot and looks a lot more abandoned than celebrated. I shot pictures of it, but it looks so pitiful that I decided not to run them.

Anyhow, the strawberries are the champs today and, hey, they're good for you.