With fall craft fairs in full swing, Smartt Assembly of God will be holding its inaugural craft fair next weekend at the church.
Liz Carr and Pat Cole, two members of Smartt Assembly of God’s congregation, are the masterminds of the craft fair and decided to hold the free event to give back to the community and bring awareness to the church.
“We wanted to bring the community together and allow everyone to meet each other and create a fellowship among community members, as well as bring awareness to and support everyone who owns a small business,” says Cole.
This coming Friday, Nov. 15 from 2 to 9 p.m., and Saturday, Nov.16 from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., over 30 vendors will be displaying their homemade goods in the two buildings located on the church grounds at 5542 Manchester Highway.
“We wanted the craft fair to be a big event so we decided to hold it on both Friday and Saturday to give the vendors a chance to get their names out to the public,” says Carr. “Publicity is important since it is sometimes hard to get recognized while being a small business.”
Crafts, art, homemade vinyl designs, candles, woodwork, jewelry, baked bread and goods, molasses, children’s clothing, rock candy, wreathes, quilts and crocheted items will be displayed and sold at the craft fair. An assortment of Thanksgiving and Christmas decorations will be on site, as well as a variety of other home décor.
“This is a great way to gather people together and shop local instead of purchasing items from big retail stores,” says Carr. “It helps local craftsmen when the money spent is going to individuals and back into the community.”
Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus will be making an appearance at the Smartt Assembly of God’s craft fair. A raffle will be held for participants to win gift certificates to local restaurants. The church will be selling homemade breakfast foods, hot dogs, hamburgers, nachos and muffins, while a vendor will be having a fish fry outside.
“I’m excited to get together with everyone,” says Carr. “I enjoy the feeling of community and fellowship while helping bring attention to the church and the many talented craftsmen in the area.”
The majority of the vendors are from McMinnville with a few from Woodbury and Rock Island.
“This is our first year holding the craft fair and we’re hoping it will be a success. Vendor spots were booked up very quickly,” says Cole. “If this goes well we hope to hold another one in the spring.”
