Some stormy weather may have dampened Massapequa residents’ clothing, but certainly not their spirits as many turned out for a long-standing local traditi
on—the Massapequa Historical Society’s annual Strawberry Festival.
Taking place as it always does at Old Grace Church on Merrick Road, the Strawberry Festival has been one of the organization’s regular major fundraising efforts dating back to the 1970s.
Attendees could not only buy packages of fresh, locally-sourced strawberries from Anderson Farms in Riverhead, but yummy strawberry shortcake as well. But while crops had been adversely affected in recent years due to weather and other issues, this year the strawberries were big, full and bursting with delicious ripeness, according to Historical Society President Bill Colfer.
“This was a great year for strawberries,” he said. “With the winter we had, it was really good…in fact, they’re the best strawberries we’ve ever had. They’ve been selling very well today…at this point, we’re almost sold out.”
The Strawberry Festival is a fun, family-friendly event filled with food, handmade crafts and other items sold by local vendors, and delightful, toe-tapping music supplied by the Banjo Rascals ragtime trio. In addition, Historical Society members provided free tours of Old Grace Church and its surrounding grounds to attendees.
“We’re still almost sold out regardless of the weather,” said Colfer. “So, the Strawberry Festival is successful, but even if it wasn’t, people who live in Massapequa still expect it…we’re almost obligated to do it no matter what, and we don’t want to let anybody down.”
The presence of the late Peter J. Schmitt, leader of Nassau County’s Legislature and longtime supporter of the Massapequa Historical Society who sadly passed away in 2012, is still felt to this day, Colfer said. Schmitt, a Massapequa resident since 1974, regularly manned the hot dog booth at the Strawberry Festival and was a regular presence in the community throughout the years.
“Peter loved the Historical Society, and he wasn’t just a face on the wall…he was a hard worker for us,” he said. “He made every meeting, he did everything you asked him to do. That’s what being a trustee is about and he’s missed.”
Working the hot dog booth this year was Nassau County Legislator James Kennedy, Schmitt’s son-in-law, who was recently voted to fill the empty seat in the legislature left by Michael Venditto’s election to the State Senate.
“Being a representative of the people of this area is a great thing and I love it,” he said. “It’s a bittersweet thing regarding how it happened…I started doing the Strawberry Festival after my father-in-law passed, and it’s great to be helping out.”
Lifelong Massapequa resident Tina Villalobos is a regular at the Strawberry festival and has been a volunteer with Farmingdale Macaroni Kid, donating crafts for the last two years.
“It’s a little wet this year, but we had a lot of traffic this morning and a lot of people went home with strawberries, shortcake, and other great stuff,” she said. “I always love the Festival and how it brings the community together. Events like this are what makes Massapequa a great place to live in.”
