Eat, spend money, and stay safe was the message Sunday from numerous speakers at St. John’s annual Festival Food Fair.
“Be on your good behavior,” Floresa Henley said to the crowd gathered at Cruz Bay Park. Henley was honored at the Food Fair for her many years of support for Festival events.
It was hot, hot, hot in Cruz Bay, but that didn’t deter folks from buying something to eat from the food vendors set up along the waterfront.
“Tamarind balls, sweet potato pudding, sugar cake, tarts of all different flavors," St. John resident Barbara Hendricks said as she ticked off all the goodies she had for sale.
While most of the food vendors were there in hopes of making a profit, a group from the Westin Resort and Villas were selling good baked in the Westin kitchens to benefit the Boys and Girls Club of the Virgin Islands.
“It’s our heavenly treat fund,” Penny Lambert said.
Most of the vendors were in the park and the waterfront, but Alexandrina Anthony from St. Thomas couldn’t arrange space in those locations so she set up her fruit and vegetable stand a block away, across from Nazareth Lutheran Church. She had kidney mangoes, julie mangoes, passion fruit, star fruit, pomegranate, and pumpkin all enticingly displayed.
“And season pepper – the cooking pepper,” she said, continuing to list all her wares.
Later, St. John resident Denise Wright was seen eyeing the produce.
“I got some of those cucumbers. They taste like cucumbers you grow in your own yard,” she said.
While the emphasis was on local food, it was also possible to buy that mainland country fair standby, Kettle Corn.
“People love it,” said Mark Kragel of St. Thomas, discussing popcorn that came in several colors.
The Food Fair also had plenty of craft vendors on hand to sell their wares, and Khene Bazile and Iris Prince were busy selling larimar jewelry.
“From my country, the Dominican Republic,” Prince said.
As is traditional, the St. John Festival queen and princess were crowned at Food Fair. This year the honors went to St. Thomas residents Khadijah Ashiya Ann Lee as queen and Faith Marie Sweeney as princess.
In addition to speeches and coronations, a new young children’s group called the Hibiscus Cultural Dancers drew slews of "Oohs!" and "Aren’t they cutes?" from the crowd.
When the Love City Pan Dragons weren’t pinging away on their steel pans, folks from around the Virgin Islands as well as visitors stopped to chat.
“We came out just to mingle and enjoy the local delicacies,” St. Thomas resident Maria Conor said, adding that she brought along her mother, visiting from St. Maarten, and her sisters to enjoy the day.
Alex Price, 13, of Gainesville, Fla., was a first-time visitor to Festival activities, and was making the rounds though the park with his grandparents and mother. A bit shy, he allowed that he was interested in hearing the music.
Dan Pavlick and his family from Pittsburgh, Penn., were vacationing at the Westin, a return visit to St. John, because he honeymooned on the island 20 years ago. He said he went to church Sunday morning and heard the Food Fair mentioned in the priest’s remarks.
“We just stumbled on it,” he said.
