St. James holding Homemade Harvest Craft Fair
Fall is in the air, and there couldn’t be a better time to get those early holiday lists in order and take advantage of St. James Episcopal Church’s upcoming Homemade Harvest Craft Fair on Sept. 21 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the church, 201 N. Market St., Wooster.
The event will feature 20 vendors, primarily from Wayne County, with a few from surrounding counties.
“There will be a great selection of items for sale: decorative crafts, stuffed animals, bags, baby items, soaps, candles, clothing, ornaments, woodcrafts and more,” said Carrie Bonvallet, chair of the craft fair organizing committee.
Additionally, there will be a large bake sale. There also will be popcorn, chips and drinks for sale. Shoppers also may purchase lunch items such as sloppy joes or shredded-chicken sandwiches.
Not only will sales support local craftspeople, church profits from the event will support the St. James pet pantry — the church’s primary parish outreach program.
“Our members believe that financial hardship should never separate loving pet owners from their animals,” Bonvallet said. “Pets are often beloved members of the family and have an immense positive impact on the mental health of their owners. St. James provides free pet food to anyone in need so that they can keep their pets healthy and happy.”
For more information on the pantry, visit www.stjameswooster.org/pet-pantry.
In addition to being the church home, the St. James building is used for a variety of purposes supporting various community nonprofits and civic groups. Funds also will be used to maintain the historic building.
Bonvallet discussed some of the ways the building is used by and for the community.
“Our community room is home to 10 weekly Alcohol Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous meetings,” she said. “Our building is also used by several other nonprofit and government organizations. The Homelessness Task Force, Quota Club and Emblem Club regularly use our space. Children’s Services uses our parish hall to teach life skills classes to young adults aging out of foster care, and the Juvenile Court has used our space to host several Christmas parties for families working to be reunited with their children.”
This is the first year for the craft fair, and St. James is hoping to make it an annual event. The idea came about as a way to share the church space with the public, share the creative wares of local artisans, and raise money for the pet pantry and church upkeep.
The motto of St. James Church is “Inviting In. Reaching Out.”
“Members of our parish love to cook, and they love to host visitors,” Bonvallet said. “Our priest and many of our members are also very crafty. Hosting a craft fair seemed like a perfect way to invite the community into our beautiful building, have some fun and support some of our outreach missions.”
The Homemade Harvest Craft Fair will be held just a short walk from the Saturday morning downtown farmers market. The event will be held in the parish hall and community room. Guests can enter both spaces through entrance doors on North Street and off the alley behind the building. For more information visit www.stjameswooster.org/craftfair.