Three reunited friends sharing a group hug, a brother and sister screaming in delight riding the swing carousel, and a family enjoying a funnel cake were just a few of the many sights to see at the Church of the Holy Eucharist’s 27th annual Pine Barrens Festival last week.
This year’s festival offered attendees free entertainment, fun games, raffles and rides, and a broad offering of food selections. However, it wasn’t just for those things that people came to the festival; attendees came to celebrate the Pine Barrens itself and the neighborhood it has created.
“There is just something so special about the Pine Barrens. I travel a lot and there is no place like here. It just has this warm feeling and it is so friendly,” Jen Nowicki-Clark, formerly of Medford, said.
For almost every festival-goer, the Pine Barrens Festival is a tradition. Gerri and Ted Hughes of Southampton have been coming to the festival for years, first bringing their children to the festival and now bringing their grandchildren. Tom and April Weiss of Tabernacle have been coming for the past 11 years with their kids, and Maria, Kayla and Jake Raparelli, also of Tabernacle, come out for their friends and church.
“We love it. We look forward to it each year,” Gerri said.
The Clarks come to visit family around this time each year, as they now live in Tucson, Ariz. They always try to plan their visit so they can go to the festival.
“This is my second time here … I like the Alien Abduction ride,” Julian Clark said.
“He likes the rides. I like going over to the tent and catching up with friends,” Jen said.
For her, and many others, the festival is a great time to catch up with friends of the Pine Barren towns. Kayla, now a college student, is usually away from the area until the summer, but the festival offers her the opportunity to see her hometown friends.
“It brings back all of (Kayla’s) high school friends, who still come here and are all from different towns. They all are home for the summer and this is where they all meet up. It is so nice,” Maria said.
For the Weisses, seeing family and friends is the best part of the festival. However, Tom said it didn’t necessarily have to be a festival; it could be anything, like a bonfire, it is just a great way to catch up and have fun with everyone of the Pine Barrens.
“It is definitely the highlight of the year for the local ‘nacles … It is like a neighborhood. It’s this little area full of friendly neighbors who care about one another and know each other and come out to this thing to see one another,” Tom said.
For the Clarks, the Pine Barrens Festival too is more than just a festival. It is also a way to appreciate the Pine Barrens itself.
“I want my kids to see this place, this amazing place. The Pine Barrens is a very special place I want them to experience. The natural world here is incredibly peaceful … This part of the country, it is really rare. It is so cool to be here and still so close to the city, but still come back to the woods,” Jen said.
“There are more ticks (here) … but I like coming here. The momma deer make baby deer and the baby deer are so cute,” Julian said.
As much as people talked about the festival bringing friends together, they also talked about enjoying the rides, food and entertainment. All of the children’s favorite parts were the rides, especially the Alien Abduction ride. Kayla said she misses the bumper cars, as they didn’t have them this year. However, her and Jake’s traditional first ride on the swing carousel was there.
April Weiss loves the funnel cake and watching the kids enjoy the rides. The Hughes, too, enjoy watching their grandchildren ride the carnival rides.
“A lot of hard work is put into this festival. Kudos to (Jeff) Siedlecki, his group (and the church) for putting this together,” Tom said.
