20 Sep 2015 Fairfield Bay to host two festivals in one

Fairfield Bay is celebrating fall with two festivals in one on Friday, Oct. 9, and Saturday, Oct. 10, with the second annual OktoberFest and StoryFest, a celebration of professional story telling.

“As Fairfield Bay began to plan this year’s StoryFest and fall event, we realized that we wanted to turn our fall festival back into the OktoberFest we have celebrated in the past,” said Fairfield Bay Mayor Paul Wellenberger. “Our community enjoys celebrating the seasons and welcoming others into our beautiful Bay. A true OktoberFest includes hearty food, lively music, and is a great big community celebration — exactly what we want to share along with our story telling here in Fairfield Bay.”

OktoberFest and StoryFest are held at the Fairfield Bay Conference and Visitor’s Center at 110 Lost Creek Parkway in Fairfield Bay.

OktoberFest

Visitors to OktoberFest will find a traditional German OktoberFest celebration full of authentic German fare and Biergarten, as well as music, arts, crafts and so much more.

Free and open to the public, OktoberFest is 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Oct. 9. Local arts and crafts will be displayed for show and sale until 6 p.m. German food, music and dance will round out the day’s events.

The festival opens at 9 a.m. on Oct. 10. Thunder in the Bay, a motorcycle rally sponsored by the Fairfield Bay Chamber of Commerce, rolls from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. A Volkswagen “Show and Shine” is open until 5 p.m.

The festival concludes with a true OktoberFest celebration and dance, with an Oompah-Pah band playing 7 to 10 p.m.

At the center of a traditional OktoberFest is a truly authentic German Biergarten and mouth-watering German fare, such as brats, sausage, sauerbraten with spaetzle, sauerkraut and more.

Open throughout the festival, the authentic German Biergarten boasts plenty of seating and room to dance. The Biergarten and food sales open Friday and Saturday at 11 a.m. and go well into the nighttime festivities.

StoryFest

Along with OktoberFest, Fairfield Bay will host the sixth annual StoryFest. Each year, Fairfield Bay invites some of the best national story tellers to share their talents and bring a smile and laugh.

Story teller sessions this year will feature Sean Buvala and Minton Sparks. Activities for StoryFest are suitable for any age and will captivate all.

Morning story teller sessions begin at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, and the afternoon sessions begin at 1:30 p.m. All performances will be at the Fairfield Bay Conference and Visitor Center.

Sean Buvala has been story telling “on the road” for decades. He’s an author, a recording artist and trainer. His charismatic and animated speaking style is self-described as somewhere in between “in your life and in your face.”

He describes the collection of stories in his head as “life and legend” representing the mix of stories from his experiences, myth and legend from many cultures, sacred stories and observations of shared life events. (For more on Buvala, visit seantells.com.)

Minton Sparks is a decorated poet, playwright and author, as well as a blue collar troubadour who has performed at Lincoln Center. Minton’s tales are hilarious, humble and heartbreaking. Her spoken word/honky-tonk hybrid performances elicit whoops and hollers from her audience.

Minton is Nashville’s first non-singing country singer. She travels with longtime bandleader and guitarist John Jackson, who is a seasoned road warrior who has played with the likes of Bob Dylan, Lucinda Williams, Shelby Lynne and Tom Jones. (For more on Minton, visit mintonsparks.com.)

Tickets for StoryFest are $10 in advance and $15 at the door, and are good for entrance to both the morning and afternoon performances. To purchase tickets, call 501.884.4202.

For a complete list of events, the schedule and other information, visit FairfieldBayStartsToday.com/OktoberFest or FairfieldBayConferenceCenter.com.

Nestled in the Ozark Mountains, and situated on the banks of beautiful Greers Ferry Lake, Fairfield Bay is one of the region’s premier destinations.

The town was recognized with the 2014 City of Distinction Award for its “Quality of Life.” Located 75 miles north of Little Rock, Fairfield Bay showcases stunning mountain scenery, outdoor activities, interest groups and friendly people who create a safe environment for an outstanding value.