ANSTED, WV (WOAY) – The annual Hometown Heritage Festival is a central part of the town of Ansted’s most beloved traditions, but it wouldn’t be possible to keep such a festival alive and growing without all of the many excellent vendor workers, both old and new, coming to be a part of it.
“We do woodturning, scroll sawing, boxes… most of the wood is local from our property in Clay, and everything is handcrafted,” says Leonard Neal, a professional woodcarver and festival vendor.
While Leonard has been selling his handcrafted wood pieces at festivals and events for about seven years now, this is his first time doing so at the Heritage Festival. But, this makes year two of selling at the festival for June Bug’s BBQ, and everyone knows it wouldn’t be a festival without some delicious food.
“I love cooking and I love the reaction of the people when they eat my food,” Thomas Jones of June Bug’s BBQ says.
Along with his famous BBQ dishes, Thomas is also glad to serve up some of his homemade potato salad. And after the ribs and sandwiches, one mobile ice cream stand is more than happy to be at the festival providing some cold desserts.
“It’s really exciting! The locals all know us, we have a lot of people who follow our ice cream truck to get ice creams, so I’m seeing all of them and seeing their faces, how excited they all are, it’s heartwarming,” says Payton Fisher, co-owner of Cherry on Top Ice Cream.
After opening back in 2017, Tanya and Payton have been working as a mother-daughter team ever since, and this makes their fourth year serving ice cream at the Heritage Festival.
From handmade crafts to homemade food, The Hometown Heritage Festival would not be possible without all of the many great vendors sharing their passions at this annual celebration.
