For 17 years, the La Porte Sunflower Fair has brought people from all over the community together in downtown La Porte. Each year, it gets bigger and bigger with more and more people coming downto support local vendors selling their crafts and promoting their businesses.
“We started off as just a bake sale that took up have a block of Maple Street,” Thaddeus Cutler, Downtown Director for the City of La Porte said. “Now we’ve grown so much that we are bursting the seams of the area we have now!”
The Sunflower Fair attracts vendors and craftsmen from near and far. Most are from La Porte and have set up to show off their crafts and skills, ranging from jewelry to massages and to art. Attendees walk up and down the street, admiring all that is offered, while some come for the various food stands that send tantalizing smells all over. Entertainment was being produced by different groups, from La Porte High School student McKenzie Jacobs, a jazz band covering pop songs, and Motion Dance Company’s Synergy Dance Team.
One of the vendors was Pet Prairie, a cremation service and soon-to-be cemetery for pets. They were out promoting their business and had many different products on display like urns, memorials, and a pet bed - offering a sneak peak into the pet store they are wanting to open up in the future.
“We are out here today informing the community on how we can give pets peace,” Hope Harris said, owner and mastermind behind Pet Prairie.
The La Porte County Small Animal Shelter was also at the festival. They brought a couple of playful cats and a dog who absolutely loved anyone who would come visit the booth. They were out promoting the safety of animals, and trying to get animal lovers to later stop by and adopt a new best friend.
Cheryl Dudek of AI Designs had a booth full of paintings done with Alcohol Ink.
“Sometimes I put on some paint and let it go where it wants to do,” Dudek said. “It creates different forms and it becomes a work of art.”
Alcohol Ink behaves much like water colors, only it does what it wants to - it is a paint that has a mind of its own. The outcome of the pictures vary with color morphing together to create a picturesque seen, or some were more organized and had a story to tell within its colors.
For Jayne Grelewicz, it was her first time at the Sunflower Fair and she brought her family along.
“I’m so happy we came out today,” Grelewicz said. “The train was so much fun and my little guy Parker enjoyed every moment.”
The Sunflower Fair has so much going on. It is a place where the community is brought together to enjoy the sunshine, food, and crafts. It’s a place where everybody is a friend and everything is a celebration. Bringing the community has never been so easy and enjoyable than it is at the Sunflower Fair.