Fall Fest will offer fun, feathers, foliage & more

PLUMSTED — New Egypt's annual Fall Fest will take place along Main Street and North Main Street in its historic downtown from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 1. The event will feature food, activities for children, shopping and live entertainment.

Country music will be performed by First Time Around at Taster's Canvas, 1 North Main St., from noon to 4 p.m. Free linedancing instruction will be provided from 11 a.m. to noon by Joann Lawrence and Captain Ray of Country Class. They will be calling dances to the band's selections throughout the day. Participation is encouraged.

In addition to country music, local health teacher Chris Wells, from Plumsted's Dr. Gerald H. Woehr Elementary School, and partner Kurtis Johnson will be performing several raps from their new DVD, "Hip-Hop Health: Learning Concepts Through Physical Activity." They will be available at the festival throughout the day.

Jazz will be performed by the Jay Sweet Trio. Jay is the owner of the Sweet Music Academy in New Egypt. The Praise Team from the New Egypt United Methodist Church will also be performing.

For children, the Tea Lady will read stories from her 3-foot-tall storybooks and perform singalong songs. As part of her show, which will begin at 1 p.m., the Tea Lady will paint nails and offer stardust for girls, and pirate mustaches for boys. After her show, the Tea Lady will stroll through the crowd providing small prizes from her Tea Pot Purse and posing for pictures.

A bluebird trail featuring nine fun and informative stations about Plumsted's resident eastern bluebirds will be located at the festival and throughout town. To participate in this free experience, festival-goers will need to sign up at the bluebird information booth. The trail includes a visit to master carver William Cowen's studio on Main Street.

Participants who complete five out of the nine stations on the bluebird trail will be eligible to enter a drawing for a one-of-akind hand-carved eastern bluebird. For more information about the bluebird trail, contact William Lewis at 609-775-7134.

Alpacas will be visiting from Jackson's Alma Park Alpaca Farm. A spinner will demonstrate how to turn the alpaca wool into yarn. Animal lovers will also be able to visit the New Jersey Greyhound Adoptions table or adopt from the local animal shelter mobile unit. Representatives of Six Flags Great Adventure, Jackson, will be on hand with several animals from their educational programs.

The Presbyterian Church of New Egypt will be accepting donations for its local food bank at its table. Donations

should be nonperishable items. Especially needed is tuna, cereal, cold cereal, spaghetti sauce, canned chili, canned ravioli and white canned potatoes.

The mobile County Connection will be available all day. It is an outreach initiative of the Ocean County Board of Freeholders and is equipped to provide many of the services that are offered at the County Connection at the Ocean County Mall, Toms River, including processing passport applications and photo IDs.

Staff are also available to provide information about senior services, veterans services and many of the other programs and services of county government. Information is available about county parks, museums and cultural venues, as well as tourism related events and activities.

Anyone wishing to apply for a passport or Ocean County ID is advised to call ahead to the County Connection at the Ocean County Mall, 732-288-7777, to find out what documentation will be needed to process the application.

Ocean Health Initiatives, represented by a 40-foot handicapped-accessible Winnebago mobile unit, will be at the festival offering information for the uninsured, details about dental programs, and H1N1 flu information.

Fall Fest is sponsored by Plumsted Township, Main Street New Egypt, and the Neighborhood Preservation Program. There will be free inflatable rides, pony rides, face painting, a strolling juggler, crafts, shopping and more.