Seven-month-old Noah Dunn was a winner at Mineola’s Street Fair on Sunday, Oct. 5. Dunn won a baby-crawling contest, reaching into his mother’s arms as onlookers cheered for the infant and his equally adorable competitor.
“It’s just so cute,” said Natalia Dunn, Noah Dunn’s mother. The competition was her reason for attending the street fair.
“Natalia here wanted this so bad,” said Noah’s father, Brian Dunn. “She was like, ‘I hope they have a baby crawling contest.’ She watches the videos online and thinks it’s so cute watching the babies crawl to mommy.”
The baby crawling contest, sponsored by Harry Katz Carpet, was part of Mineola’s effort to make its longstanding street fair its biggest yet, said Tony Lubrano, who heads the Mineola Chamber of Commerce’s street fair committee.
“It was spectacular,” said Lubrano. “We thought last year was the best street fair we’ve ever had. This year blows that one away by far…I venture to guess there is no street fair on Long Island that compares to ours.”
Harry Katz Carpet’s contest was one of many sponsored by local businesses taking place on Sunday. The Mineola Diner, Talum Tacos and Spaghettini sponsored pancake, taco and meatball eating contests, respectively. Mineola Bicycle held a slowest bike competition, awarding the slowest biker with gold.
“We had so many different things happening,” Lubrano said. We had inflatable kid rides, electric go-karts, a petting zoo, and Northwell Health was there, offering flu shots and blood pressure screenings. Lost Farmer provided a beer garden near the sound stage, where the bands were playing.”
Lubrano said the chamber provided a mini golf course and a dunk tank, which the local Cub Scouts and Mineola Junior Fire Department used as fundraisers, respectively. Former mayor and County Legislator Scott Strauss volunteered to be dunked, Lubrano said, falling into the water for the cause.
Alongside the contests and games, 175 vendors brought their wares to the street, offering the thousands of attendees the opportunity to browse the booths of local businesses like Kimura Acupuncture, get their hair done at Yolieepop’s Fairy Hair and try out foods from a range of local eateries like Yankee Doodle Dandy’s, DJ’s Clam Shack and Dom’s Chicken Finger Truck while listening to six live bands.
Kids danced and participated in various activities, including spinning rides, slides and parachute games.
One family-friendly vendor was Fictitious Bookshelf, a fiction-only bookstore that hosts pop-ups across Long Island. It was the booth’s second year participating in the Mineola Street Fair, owner Amber Shaw said.
“It’s always fun seeing the other local businesses and vendors, and also just having this as a community,” Shaw said. “Also being able to advertise for your business, so being able to let people know, ‘Hey, we’re here.’ It’s also nice to know that the community also wants it, and they’re also behind me, so it’s great.”
Shaw believes the success of the fair was in part due to the weather – an 80-degree day with barely any clouds.
“It’s definitely picked up,” Shaw said. “And honestly, I can thank the weather for that. It’s been a beautiful day, even though it’s October, and that’s concerning.”
There were also community organizations present, including Mineola Volunteer Ambulance Corps, who gave out coloring books and T-shirts while recruiting new members. The booth did “pretty well” and had 13-16 people reach out about trying to join as a result of the street fair, according to Alejandro Cabrera, the first lieutenant.
Cabrera said the street fair is a good place to connect with older members who are no longer active in the Mineola Volunteer Ambulance Corps. “They always stop by, come down and see the new faces,” he said.
He also said it is an opportunity to connect with the community outside of situations that merit a call to the ambulance crops.
“We also like showing our faces to the town, so they don’t only meet us during an emergency situation,” he said. “It’s one of the best ways to actually get people to join in the town, specifically.”
Lubrano said the chamber looks forward to an even bigger festival next year.
