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NEWBERRY ‒ The city of Newberry welcomed over 1,000 visitors on Nov. 21 in celebration of the fourteenth annual Fall Festival.

The event offered arts, crafts, food, and live music to kick off the beginning of the holiday season. With more than 30 vendors, there was an abundance of creativity, visual displays, and gifts for guests of all ages. 

Activities ranged from train and camel rides, which were favorites with children, to community-based blood supplier Life South, which offered complimentary gift bags, to-go souvenirs, and treats to attendees over the age of 18 who made donations.

The beautiful weather combined with the variety of vendors present at the festival made for the perfect November outing for the Newberry community. 

One local vendor from High Springs stole the hearts of residents as she used her booth to promote a higher cause. Karen Miner, 2019 Community Impact Award Winner, offered new children’s products, coupons, and information for her Just Between Friends (JBF) children’s consignment sale that will be held at Easton-Newberry this December.

The JBF franchise offers pop-up consignment sales providing local families a safe marketplace to sell their gently used children’s items to other families in the community. “We currently have around 450 families in Alachua County that sell with us and over 5,000 shoppers from all over the state through each event, partnering with local charities for eligible donations at the end of each sale—one of our largest partners being Foster Florida,” said Miner. Foster Florida is a non-profit organization that offers care and resources to foster families and children.

Once a JBF sale is finished, families are provided the option to come back and collect their products or have the non-purchased items donated to a charity where it will be properly handled and donated to a family in need.

Miner said that this year alone, the JBF franchise has donated over 67,000 in-kind donations to local charities across the country, with one sale still to take place in Newberry December 10-13 at the Easton-Newberry Sports Complex. The sale will include gently loved books, toys, and clothing for children sized newborn through teen, and more.

In addition to activities and vendors, families and friends at the festival enjoyed themselves as they indulged in various cuisines offered by food trucks also present at the event. Each truck properly provided hand sanitizer and socially distanced tables for snacking.

The 14th annual Newberry Fall Festival was a success despite COVID-19. Event coordinator Joy Glanzer explained that the festival encouraged proper social distancing guidelines with numerous signs placed throughout the festival encouraging visitors to be safe, wash their hands, and “mask-up” when within six feet.

The festival was sponsored by the Space Walk of Gainesville, Glanzer Reality, Newberry Liquor, and Kiss 105.3.

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