More than 500 families and members of the Kutztown University campus community came out for the Pennsylvania German Cultural Heritage Center’s Heemet Fescht, “a celebration of the harvest and Pennsylvania Dutch farm life.”
“Heemet Fescht is a fall celebration exploring the traditions of the Pennsylvania Dutch and the folk culture of the broader region. We emphasize the idea of ‘Heemet’ (pronounced HAY-met), meaning ‘home’ in Pennsylvania Dutch, as a way to connect with our sense of place in this unique region we all call home,” center Executive Director Patrick Donmoyer said in a statement.
Located on the historic Sharadin Farmstead on the KU campus, the free educational event on Sept. 21 featured music in the barnyard, traditional crafts, folklife demonstrations, hearth-cooking, live animals and children’s activities.
“We hope that visitors gain an appreciation for the folk traditions of the Pennsylvania Dutch as part of the diversity of the region’s culture,” Donmoyer said. “For KU students, this can provide an opportunity to get to know the region where they live and study. For community members, this can provide an opportunity to see firsthand the commitment that KU has to preserving and celebrating regional culture.”
In the barnyard local folk musicians Mike and Linda Hertzog, Days of Old and Dave Kline performed traditional music.
Dr. William Donner in the schoolhouse offered lessons about Pennsylvania Dutch culture and education.
Traditional artisans from the Reading-Berks Chapter of the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen shared their expertise in fine crafts in the historic log cabins on site.
Throughout the farm, visitors could watch demonstrators present their trades and crafts, from woodworking to blacksmithing, a working tinsmith shop to spinning and more.
Hex sign artist Eric Claypoole of Lenhartsville, who has painted more than 100 barns, demonstrated his traditional barn art.
In the Sharadin Farmhouse kitchen, Becky Manley demonstrated open-hearth cooking of traditional Pennsylvania Dutch food. In the summer kitchen, visitors could get a taste of Terry Berger’s sugar cookies baked in a wood stove.
Children’s autumn craft activities included pumpkin painting and corn dolls.
“I always remind first-time visitors to the center that one does not have to be Pennsylvania Dutch to enjoy participating in and experiencing local traditions,” Donmoyer said.
“When we experience and learn about a culture’s traditions, it provides the opportunity to reflect on one’s own lived cultural experiences, and form a greater understanding of the aspects we hold in common,” Donmoyer continued. “Foodways, arts, and vernacular language — these are aspects that flavor a region’s cultural diversity and provide the basis for unique experiential learning opportunities.”
Other highlights included a visit from potbellied pigs from Puddin’ Heartland 1st of Auburn, a hayride around the farm and exploring the featured exhibition, “Carved from our Roots: Selected Works of Marshall D. Rumbaugh” at the Heritage Center’s new headquarters at the DeLight E. Breidegam Building.
The newest volume of the Heritage Center’s Annual Publication Series, “Sauer’s Herbal Cures: America’s First Book of Botanical Healing,” by William Woys Weaver, was available at the Heritage Center bookstand.
Heemet Fescht was established in 1993 as the signature event of the Heritage Center, featuring a wide range of folk cultural demonstrations and educational programs.
“This was just two years after the Freyberger Schoolhouse was moved to the site, and at that time the farmhouse had not yet been restored,” Donmoyer said.
The event featured craftspeople from the Lehigh and Berks chapters of the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen as well as traditional farming demonstrations, reenactments, presentations in the school house, traditional music performances, and programs in Pennsylvania Dutch language.
“Heemet Fescht has been run for over 30 years, with the only exception being that the event did not take place in 2020 during the first year of the pandemic,” Donmoyer said.
For more information, follow PGCHC on Facebook and Instagram, or visit www.pagerman.org/ or call 610-683-1589.
Source: Berkshire mont
Be First to Comment