What’s Happening, Tarboro?

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W. Terry Smith

May 16, 2008

From Stafff Reports The Daily Southerner Fri May 16, 2008, 11:31 AM EDT

Children laughing, people strolling, crafts on every corner and music serenading the streets – its all Happening on the Common Saturday.

One of Tarboro's biggest traditions is returning for its 37th year of bringing families, visitors and residents together for a day of fun.

Happening on the Common is from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Saturday. The event is presented by the Edgecombe County Cultural Arts Council and the Town of Tarboro.

It is funded in part by the Grassroots Arts Program of the North Carolina Arts Council.

"This is an outreach program for us. We don't expect to make a lot of money, we just want people to find out what the Arts Council is all about," said Carol Banks, event organizer.

It is a day filled with arts and crafts, entertainment, food and joyful volunteers.

Throughout the Common, making this the largest festival to date, there will be more than 60 arts and craft venders selling their original work. Venders are hailing from all across Carolina bringing handmade crafts such as pottery, pocket books, hand dressed dolls, wooden toys, musical instruments, stained glass and jams and more.

"We were careful to insist that all crafters wares were homemade or hand-painted or hand crafted," said Buddy Hooks, executive director of the Arts Council.

Besides venders, there are four inflatable amusements: Jurassic Park, Superslide, The Caterpillar and an obstacle course. However, parents will have to dig a deeper in their pockets to buy tickets. The price has gone up from $1 to $2. A special rock climbing adventure for teenagers costs two tickets, $4.

The trackless train also requires a $2 ticket.

"It's costing us more money this year," Hooks said. "We need to recoup some of the money we are spending."

Inside the Arts Council tent will be face painting and a pottery station manned by potter and art instructor Sue Winstead from Wilson.

Winstead will demonstrate with clay slabs and children will be able to create their own piece using stamp designs to cut out. She will give each child a choice of glaze colors and take them back to her studio to fire them and make (refrigerator) magnets for them. This will be free to the children.

"For the younger children," Hooks said, "we will be blowing big bubbles with an assortment of wands to dip and blow into the wind to make big bubbles."

For entertainment, the acts on stage begin at 10 a.m.

The Arts Council also will be selling colorful ("got culture?") t-shirts for $10 and items from the Blount-Bridgers House consignment shop (paintings, prints, pottery, glass, notecards, books, etc).

"We were very lucky this year to get more sponsor that gave us the freedom to offer more and to order t-shirts," Hooks said. "If we sell all of the t-shirts, we'll be able to fund an additional arts program in the next year, and to produce new educational materials about the Blount-Bridgers House and artist Hobson Pittman. "

No festival is complete without an abundance of food. There will be 17 food vendors. The menu includes pork rinds, roasted nuts, cotton candy, hamburgers, hot dogs, corn dogs, soft ice cream, sno cones, pizza, funnel cakes, ribs and barbecue.

There will be a picnic area for those that want to sit and eat.

Bottled water will be for sale.

The day can't be pulled off without the help of volunteers, some 30 men and women.

"We have a lot of volunteers," said Banks. "We wouldn't be able to have this without them.

"It's been hard work, but I'm looking forward to it," she said. "Hopefully, it'll run smoothly. I am anticipating a large crowd, so it better not rain."

The forecast is for sunny skies and temperatures in the upper 70s.

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