Live music and folklife demonstrations headline the fun at Heemet Fescht 2022
KUTZTOWN, PA – Heemet Fescht 2022 on September 24 from 11am-4pm, features live music in the barnyard, traditional crafts, folklife demonstrations, hearth-cooking, live animals, children’s activities, book signings by local authors and more.
Indulge your interest in regional folk culture at the Pennsylvania German Cultural Heritage Center’s Heemet Fescht 2022: a celebration of the harvest and Pennsylvania Dutch farm life. Heemet (pronounced HAY-met) means “home” in Pennsylvania Dutch. Heemet Fescht is a celebration of the harvest and Pennsylvania Dutch farm life. Located on the historic Sharadin Farmstead, the event is free, fun, and educational for the whole family.
Enjoy live music in the barnyard featuring local Berks County folk musicians Mike & Linda Hertzog, Keith Brintzenhoff, and a special performance of music and humor by award-winning Pennsylvania Dutch language promoter Doug Madenford, a co-editor of the dialect newspaper “Hiwwe wie Driwwe,” which is celebrating its 25th year of publication. A commemorative book, 25 Yaahre Hiwwe wie Driwwe, A Quarter Century of Transatlantic Friendship, will be available for purchase.
Puddin Heartland’s extraordinary potbellied pigs will delight visitors of all ages, and children can explore autumn craft activities including pumpkin painting and corn dolls. Families can also assist with the potato harvest onsite with the Potato Project, a non-profit organization providing food to the Greater Berks Food Bank.
Traditional artisans from the Reading-Berks Chapter of the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen will share their expertise in fine craft in the historic log cabins onsite, along with folklife demonstrators in woodworking, tin smithing, and more throughout the farm. Learn about barn stars and hex signs with Eric Claypoole, who has painted over 100 barns and was recently honored for this lifetime achievement in the Heritage Center folklife publication entitled 100 Barns, which will be available for purchase.
A reading and book-signing with award-winning author William Woys Weaver will showcase the Heritage Center’s new annual publication Folk Tales of the Pennsylvania Dutch at 12:30pm in the Freyberger Schoolhouse. At 2:30pm, join celebrated historic preservationist Jeffrey Marshall for a discussion on the significance of historic barns and a book-signing for his new work Barnstorming in Eastern Pennsylvania and Beyond.
Don’t forget to stop by the Sharadin farmhouse to experience the delightful sound of the harp masterfully played by Sarajane Williams of PlanetHarp, as well as open-hearth regional cookery in the kitchen, and traditional baking in the summer kitchen.
For more information, follow PGCHC on Facebook and Instagram, visit pagerman.org/heemet-fescht, or call 610-683-1589.