Brooktondale Apple Festival to celebrate 60 years

The Brooktondale Apple Festival is turning 60 this year. The event will take place Oct. 21 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. with all the attractions it has become known for, but with one big difference that has come about in just the last three years: more people.

Until the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the entire event was held inside the two buildings at the Brooktondale Community Center, a local institution in its own right that dates back to 1964.

“The first year of COVID, we did a very scaled-down version but outside, under the pavilion,” said Nancy Hall, co-chair of the Brooktondale Community Center Board of Directors.

In 2021 the volunteers moved the festival outside. “And it grew phenomenally,” Hall said. “Everybody had had enough of staying away from people and wanted more interaction.”

The weather cooperated for the last few years, there was more room for vendors to spread out, and the event expanded from just 300 to 500 people pre pandemic to around 1,000 to 1,200 attendees in 2022.

Of course, as is tradition, there will be “tons of pies for sale,” Hall said. Pie bees started last week and will continue until the event. About 600 volunteers will lend a hand in the baking of about 300 to 350 pies, Hall said.

The pie bees are get-togethers centered around getting the pies assembled and into the oven. Volunteer groups such as the Boy Scouts and Girls Scouts help out, as well as individual volunteers, and they also make apple crisp as well as gluten-free apple pie.

“Gluten-free pie we’ve been doing for four years now,” Hall said. “We had a lot of requests for it, so we said, ‘Why not? We’ll try it.’ You would hardly know the difference if you weren’t aware it was gluten free.”

What is the secret to a good pie?

“I think it’s the crust,” Hall said. For the last several years, the homemade crust for all of the pies has been the creation of Lucy Gagliardo.

“It’s a really standard recipe,” said Hall, adding that though it may seem simple, making a good pie crust takes just the right touch.

The festival will also feature live music, local vendors and a silent auction. A 5K race will begin at 9 a.m. The proceeds from the registration for the race will go to the Brooktondale Community Center.

A parade will be held the day before the festival from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., starting at the Brooktondale Community Center. Staging begins at 4:30 p.m. This year’s theme is Celebrating the Best of Brooktondale. Participants can walk, ride a bike (or a scooter or unicycle) or drive a vehicle. Animals are welcome as long as they are well behaved and cleaned up after, and candy is permitted as long as it is handed out and not thrown.  

To sign up for the parade, register for the 5K or find out more information about the apple festival, visit http://brooktondalecc.org/apple-festival-5k.

The apple festival quilt raffle, a staple of the event for many years, will be for a Mexican star queen-size quilt this year. Tickets are $1 or 6 for $5 and can be purchased at the Brooktondale Farmers Market every Saturday.