On June 15, the Village of Mortlach drew thousands from around the province as it hosted its 15th annual Saskatoon Berry Festival, which proved to be a “berry good time” for the community.
This year’s festival followed the traditional course and included a pancake breakfast, parade, pie-eating contest, and more – aside from a few minor adjustments.
“We really enjoyed the parade and we… (included) kids biking in (it),” said Aspen Hall, the festival’s vendor and trade show co-ordinator. “We thought that was a good thing because they got to decorate their bikes… (and) that was enjoyable for the kids.”
Hall said this year also saw the introduction of a new mascot for the festival, aptly named “Berry,” who is a friendly, animated Saskatoon berry.
“We’re happy with the amount of people who have been coming through and the weather has been great,” she added.
The festival saw 63 merchandise vendors line Mortlach’s Rose Street along with eight food and drink vendors, which Hall said was an increase from last year’s total.
Saskatoon berry pies for the pie-eating contest were donated by Hub Meats, and Prairie Berries donated around 500 pies for sale at the village’s community hall. This was complemented by a donation of ice cream to serve alongside the pies thanks to Safeway.
One of the vendors at the event, Linda Button with Caleigh’s Crystals, said she really enjoyed attending her first festival.
“It’s nice to see this many people out on a day like today just enjoying themselves,” she said. The Yorkton-based vendor said she’ll “definitely” attend next year’s festival after witnessing first-hand the hospitality of the Mortlach community.
“We’re not ignored – people are actually inquiring about things even if they don’t buy (from us),” she said. “And that’s super nice. In a lot of places (I’ve been to) they… don’t even interact with you. But here, the people are talking and they’re generally happy.”
Her business, Caleigh’s Crystals, is named after her daughter and Button said she’s now expanding her product line. She also has a televised show called “Button’s Corner” which airs on Access Now TV at 2 p.m. on Wednesdays.
Hall is one of the eight members of the festival’s Mortlach Community Development and Agricultural Society (MCDAS) group, which is tasked with organizing the festival and is now in its third year bearing this prestigious duty. Much of the committee’s work relies on feedback from vendors.
“We’re a pretty new committee still,” she said. “So (any) feedback is really great for us.”
She explained that the group made a few adjustments to this year’s festival based on feedback from previous years. This included a shorter timeframe for the event, additional handicap parking, and the same advice influences everything from the number of garbage cans and washrooms to vendor opportunities.
Planning the annual Saskatoon Berry Festival is no small feat, either. “We usually start planning… around January,” Hall said. “It’s quite an extensive process.”
All proceeds from the yearly festival are invested back into the community. In the past, a few of these investments have included support for the village’s new spray park, upgrading sidewalks, purchasing picnic benches, and beautifying the town with planters and flowers.
When you first enter the village, the welcome sign was also purchased with proceeds from the yearly festival. One upcoming project the committee plans to include is a new playground space.
“Everything that comes in… all the profit from this (festival) is going back into our community,” Hall confirmed. “That’s kind of our main purpose — to promote our community, beautify it, and make it a nice place to live and work.”
