Release: Sept. 27, 2019
GAMBIER, Ohio — Kenyon College’s Brown Family Environmental Center hosts its 2019 Harvest Festival on Saturday, Oct. 19, from noon-4 p.m. The event, free and fun for all ages, will be held at the 500-acre nature preserve, located at 9781 Laymon Road.
The festival will feature numerous activities and concessions including face painting, hayrides, pumpkin decorating with master gardeners from the Ohio State University, a campfire, music from local bands and live animals ranging from llamas to goats. Children’s games and activities from last year have been revamped. New to the festival this year is a mobile archery range, where festivalgoers will have the opportunity to shoot arrows at targets inside a converted tractor-trailer.
Guests can purchase food from Chef Meagan’s Food Truck and warm, seasonal beverages from Wooden Shoe Coffee. Festivalgoers can also make their own drinks with a real apple cider press.
In organizing the event, BFEC Post-Baccalaureate Fellow Mia Fox wanted to ensure the event will be both fun and eco-friendly. “The missions of the BFEC and Office of Green Initiatives both encourage and emphasize protection of our natural environment,” she said. “We recognize that a fun event like the Fall Harvest Festival has the potential to generate a lot of waste. Because of this, and as with our 2019 Earth Day Festival, this event will be a zero-waste event with the help of Knox County Recycling and Litter Prevention.”
Photographs from the 22nd annual Knox County Nature Photography Contest will be on display at the festival, and attendees are invited to vote on their favorite submissions from noon-2 p.m. The winner of the “people’s choice” vote, along with winners of the children’s, adult and student divisions, will be announced at the festival. Photo entries will be accepted until Monday, Oct. 14.
For more information, contact Fox at foxm@kenyon.edu. Questions regarding the photography contest can be directed to Jill Kerkhoff at 740-427-5053 or kerkhoffj@kenyon.edu.