Thousands visit Art in the Park
By ROWENA PLETT
Staff writer
Traffic flow was steady between Hillsboro and Marion Saturday as thousands of people traveled between the two towns to attend their respective arts and crafts fairs.
It was a beautiful day with blue skies, bright sunshine, and moderate temperatures, perfect for a day of shopping.
According to organizers, attendance was up from the previous year, which also was considered a success.
As usual, vendors and shoppers alike at Marion's Art in the Park expressed appreciation for the "beautiful" park setting. Many said they enjoyed the relaxing atmosphere.
A wide variety of art and homemade crafts was available.
Two booths featured musicians playing hand-crafted wooden flutes of various sizes and shapes. They sold cassettes and CDs. One was a Navajo Indian from New Mexico. The others were natives of Equador.
Judy Cantrell of Dennis Port, Mass., sold hanging reflective bird ornaments made from discarded AOL discs. She said she was visiting relatives in Newton and decided to join the fair.
Cantrell was exuberant in her praise of the day. She said she lost her husband three months ago, and the whole atmosphere, including the music and the people, soothed her heart.
"It is so wonderful here," she said. "The people are so friendly."
A mobile espresso bar operated by several people from McPherson was popular. They said sales exceeded their expectations.
A couple of women from Missouri sold home-constructed life-like baby dolls ranging in price from $75 and up. They said they quickly sold out of the 20 or so dolls they brought along and were taking orders for more.
Kara Zonnefeld didn't fare so well. She was selling jewelry made of natural, semi-precious stones and sterling silver. The up-scale items didn't sell well. Zonnefeld said Art in the Park was the first show in which she had participated.
People who wanted a break from shopping sat on benches in front of the gazebo and listened to musical entertainment provided by Steve Hanson and Leslie Diener of Salina. They sang and played electric guitars.
They were joined during the last half-hour performance by Hanson's seven-year-old son Taylor on his electric guitar. He was a big hit.
The food court was popular as vendors reported brisk business all day.
Many volunteers provided needed services. The Boy Scouts assisted vendors in setting up and tearing down. They also handled trash. The Marion High School Forensics Club provided baby-sitting at the playground.
Several downtown businesses benefited from the event. McGillicuddy's reported being within $46 of its best day ever. Janie Meierhoff said business at Duckwall's was slow Saturday morning, but the afternoon was extremely busy. She said the previous two days brought extra customers, as well, so it was a good week.
Marion County Sheriff Lee Becker said the whole weekend went very well:
"It was a good two days, with perfect weather and good people."
Art in the Park chairman Judy Christensen agreed.
"I was very pleased with the way everything went," she said. "There's no way I can ever express enough thanks to all the volunteers who helped it go smoothly. It took a lot of effort on everyone's part."
