LEARNING AND SHARING CUBA HISTORY
After agreeing to serve as ambassadors for Cuba in these roles as King and Queen, Scott said to the Garlic Fest planning group: “To do this well, we are going to need to know more about the history of Cuba.” And so we started talking with people who have deep roots in Cuba.
First we spoke with Dave Crowley, the Cuba town historian, where we learned, among other things, about the history of cheese making in this area. Next, we spoke with Bonnie Blair, owner of the “Block Barn”. She filled us in on the fascinating background of this amazing building. Then we talked with Michele Conklin, who greets visitors to the Palmer Opera House and Cheese Museum.
What we had uncovered was really interesting. So we decided to share what we had learned with others. Which is why we created a four-fold brochure to hand out to visitors at the Garlic Festival, and a Cuba History page for the Cuba Chamber website.
LOOKING THE PART
To get ready for these roles, we made a few enhancements to our wardrobes. The robes themselves had been re-made fairly recently by Lynn Fulmer—much cooler than the original robes—and just needed some arm slots added. For the scepters, we purchased two shovel handles at Worth W Smith Hardware, which we then bedazzled and topped with ceramic garlic bulbs. For the stoles, Lynn helped us remake them, re-using the old letters and adding a cute garlic patch to each.
SUCH A FABULOUS EVENT
The weekend of the Cuba Garlic Festival was fabulous weather. Even the leaves on the hillside behind the Block Barn got the memo and were starting to turn. The event itself was very well-organized, with so many vendors appreciating and commenting on this. We heard the phrase “well-oiled machine” more than once.
We had attended the planning meetings, and we helped with the set-up and tear-down. So we saw how much time local volunteers invested in creating this positive outcome. Beyond that, we recognized the value of the experience that so many bring to making this annual event run so well.
For example, the logistics of parking that many cars was something else! Not to mention the planning for all the musical performances, the cooking demonstrations and the activities for kids. Add to that security, money handling, and grounds clean-up. It was truly impressive to witness the level of cooperation, dedication and hard work that people in this community give to this event.
THE KING AND QUEEN WELCOME YOU!
During the summer, as we were assembling our royal wardrobes, Michele suggested we take a picture for use in promotions for the event. So mid-August, we had a dress rehearsal at the Block Barn and took a few pictures. But we could not have guessed at the number of people who would tell us, during the Festival, they had seen our picture on social media and came to get a picture with us!
In fact, for many, it’s become a yearly tradition for them to get a picture with the Garlic Festival King and Queen. “We’ve been looking for you!” many said. Our hats are off—or crowns, as the case may be—to all the many Cuba Garlic Festival Kings and Queens who served before us. We met several of you and feel honored to now be part of this great lineage.
It was truly a special weekend for us to walk among the crowds and delight people with our presence and a picture. We saw smiles everywhere we turned. (Little kids were extra-happy when we let them hold our sparkly scepters!)
We were both proud to represent our community at the Cuba Garlic Festival. And we gladly sing the praises of everyone who made it such a success.
Your neighbors,
Jill Loree and Scott Wisler
This article is a community submission from Jill Lorree. It has been rewritten and edited for publication. The views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of this publication.
