Blairsville Sorghum Festival

03/03/2025

Hello.
It's me(lisa). I've spent the last 24 hours going from sad to mad to apathetic. I've responded to posts in anger after suggestion that our organization is made up of crooks and criminals. I've responded in frustration to posts where someone cannot understand the the county provides traffic control and in return we put on a sorghum festival that generates mass tax revenue. I've answered countless phone calls and text messages. I'm tired of defending us. Thank you to those of you who know us and love us and understand the wonderful contributions we've made to our community over-the last 55 years. If I was sitting on the fence, I am no longer, it's been brutal reading the things people are saying about us. You don't even know us. Here's what you do:
Get started plowing them fields for cane growing. It's gonna be a long hot next few months and yall got a lot to do. Good luck with your festival. I've not been to a festival other than the sorghum festival for the last 20 years. I think I'll check some of the competion out. Probably won't make to your festival.
I'm off social media for awhile, people are terrible, mentally lazy and keyboard bullies.
Further communication will be in the NGN.
Thank you and may our Lord help us all to be better people.

03/02/2025

Hello
It's appears that a pecking contest has been ignited by our post to our wonderful vendors, fellow non-profits, and demonstration vendors. We were simply notifying them of our decision to end at 55.
I saw earlier Mr. Collins had responded to a question of which I will attach.

Here are a few, not all, but a few facts so people can understand.

Mr. Collins is absolutely correct. He did not nor did he have any input in our decision to cancel the festival. That decision is ours and ours alone. We are a small group of volunteers and in no capacity work for the county or at the direction of the county. This will be addressed in the NGN at some point.

So here is a true brief run down.

I (lisa) requested a meeting with Mr. Collins in early February, meeting was held February 11th. We had have always touched base with the commissioner prior to any year's festival.

I asked if we were good to go for 2025.
Mr Collins informed me that Jennifer and Tony had come up with a plan for the festival and he would get jennifer to explain it to me.
The plan is for the county to organize the vendors, mark the field in preparation for vendor setup on festival eve but that we would be responsible for any vendor related problems during the festival that might arise. Rational for for us being responsible was that it would be a conflict of interest for the county to manage the vendors during the festival. I did not ask why that would be a conflict of interest but I assume one of the three of them will address this when they are ready. In exchange they want 100% of the vendor booth fees.

In exchange for the rag- tag bunch of us keeping that festival going all these years, the agreement has been that the festival pays for everything festival related inside the gates and the county supports our efforts to keep it going by having our wonderful fire and rescue men/women management traffic control and parking which falls outside the gates. This arrangement was made in 2021 after the festival shutting down in 2020 for the flu.
We decided to let 2019 the 50th anniversary be the end.
In 2021 we were heavily courted by the commissioners office, the chambers of commerce office and the DDA that we would have all the help we needed and the county would hold there end of the bargain of traffic control and parking. Yes, like the idiots we were we believed it all and decided ok. The revenue brought into this county by the sorghum festival itself is more than enough to cover any expense that the county expends to the fire department for directing traffic and parking. Of course we know this. It's not our first festival, margaret.

We didn't beg to put the festival on, they begged us to continue it. Let's get that straight for future reference.

This year we were told that in exchange for fire/rescue they would also require the gate/entrance revenue.

They told me that they would be taking the approximately 56,000. To 60,000. Thousand dollar sorghum festival generated income and letting all the children that pay ball at Meeks Park, play for free.

Summary: they told us they would let us put the festival on with those stipulations and they would have an attorney draw up paperwork for the agreement.

I told them to hold off on that, probably wouldn't be required.

Sorghum festival people held a meeting, decided that would not be beneficial to what we accomplish with our festival generated income. (Much more on that later). And said we'll just let it ride at 55. Continue our scholarship funding and various project through the county till our funds are depleted, continue upkeep on our corporate name which is officially " The Blairsville Sorghum Festival" and continue to be the very fine people that we are.

That friends is the short version.

And absolutely yes, we'll take your questions but might be a little bit for answers cause I gotta go do some stuff for my moma.

Thanks for reading if you made it this far.

Lisa.

10/17/2024

Come out and join us for the second weekend of the Blairsville Sorghum Festival! 9-5 Saturday and Sunday. Free parking. $5 Admission. 12 and under Free. Lots of craft vendors & demonstrations! Great music and fantastic food! Our Old Time Games are back too! Beautiful Sorghum Syrup ready to buy and a brand new order of Sorghum Festival T-shirts. If you couldn't find what you wanted last weekend we have more! We appreciate everyone who has reached out to buy a shirt or make a donation for our Hurricane Helene disaster fund. Looking forward to seeing yall this weekend!
Blairsvillesorghumfestival.com

10/15/2024

We've had several local people reach out and ask where they can pick up a shirt or drop a donation if they aren't gonna make it to the festival. Abby at The Josephine has offered to do this for us through the week. We will have more shirts coming in this weekend for the festival 😀

Blairsville Sorghum Festival has a $10,000 goal for our Hurricane Helene disaster fund. 100% of the money raised by our 55th Anniversary Sorghum Festival T-shirts will go toward this relief effort. $25 for short sleeve $35 for long sleeve.(Comfort Colors) Anything you can do to help us get above our goal is much appreciated! ❤ Hope to see ya'll Saturday and Sunday! God Bless.

10/10/2024

Anybody got a saw we can use?? Seriously 🤣😳

10/08/2024

Blairsville Sorghum Festival has a $10,000 goal for our Hurricane Helene disaster fund. 100% of the money raised by our 55th Anniversary Sorghum Festival T-shirts will go toward this relief effort. $25 for short sleeve $35 for long sleeve.(Comfort Colors) Anything you can do to help us get above our goal is much appreciated! ❤ Hope to see ya'll Saturday and Sunday! God Bless.

10/05/2024

One more week y'all and it's Sorghum Festival time! Lots of craft vendors & demonstrations will be set up this year! A variety of fantastic foods and old time favorite snacks throughout the festival. Our games are back, aimed to please the crowd with Aaron Dills hollerin' Pull, Pull, Pull! Fantastic music each day and of course Syrup! The Sorghum Syrup process made right there in front of you and jarred to sell. Looking forward to seeing yall soon!
Blairsvillesorghumfestival.com
Its hard to make a cheerful and upbeat post about coming out to have a good time at The Blairsville Sorghum Festival when we know it very well could have been us hit with this storm and suffering the unthinkable right now. Just know that our neighbors are most certainly in our prayers and we will be doing our part to help them.

09/24/2024

Here you go, folks!!! We had to change locations from last year, but the Square Dances are ONNNNNN!!!! BOTH Saturday Nights after the Blairsville Sorghum Festival closes for the day. We'll be in Meeks Park down at Pavillion Number 3.

We've got Mike Arnold calling the dances, as requested, and we've got a HOT band!! John Rice will be WEARING OUT the Hoe Down Tunes!! Fabulous Gary Taylor is on Steel, John McCoy is on Drums, Austin Davenport Music is on the Bass and I'm on Electric Guitar. You never know who else might drop in.

This event is brought to you by Union County Recreation Department.

09/20/2024

It most definitely felt like Summer today while we were preparing for Fall! Perfect free photo op at Meeks Park for homecoming dance tomorrow evening.

09/13/2024

We would love to have you in the parade! There is no application necessary.
Just show up at
371 School Cir, Blairsville, GA 30512 https://g.co/kgs/UrZ5uxJ
The parade starts at 10 AM. Rain or Shine. If you are entering a float and want to be judged, you will need to be signed in and have your float complete before 9AM. Judging starts at 9:00 am. If you're not entering a float you can sign in between 9:00 and 9:30.

There are monetary prizes for the float judging, but the monetary prize will be a donation to the local charity of your choice.

◦ Grand Winner - $500 donation in the name of the winner
◦ 1st Place - $300 donation in the name of the winner
◦ 2nd Place - $200 donation in the name of the winner
◦
3rd Place - $100 donation in the name of the winner

08/19/2024

In the Blairsville - Union County area of North Georgia, the Blairsville Sorghum Festival has been a part of Blairsville's heritage for more than 40 years. While small in number, they accomplished by far the largest and most distinctive event of the year in Union County. The Blairsville Sorghum Festival Club request and get help from hundreds of citizens, firms and organizations each year to make the Festival the success it has always been. The Blairsville Sorghum Festival Club thanks all those that help produce the festival, but most of all they appreciate your attendance.

08/14/2024

We're looking forward to the community showing off big this year at the parade! The Sorghum Festival Parade is a tradition most of us grew up anxiously awaiting as it marked the beginning of The Sorghum Festival Weekends in Blairsville! Kim Bridges and Vanna Chambers are organizing the parade this year. If you have any questions please email Kim at [email protected].
Or Vanna at [email protected]
Please like and Share and help us get word out in plenty of time for folks to plan and get creative! We appreciate that you appreciate our efforts in trying to keep some of our hometown magic alive!❤ More info on the Square Dances soon!😁

In the Blairsville - Union County area of North Georgia, the Blairsville Sorghum Festival has been a part of Blairsville's heritage for more than 40 years. While small in number, they accomplished by far the largest and most distinctive event of the year in Union County. The Blairsville Sorghum Festival Club request and get help from hundreds of citizens, firms and organizations each year to make the Festival the success it has always been. The Blairsville Sorghum Festival Club thanks all those that help produce the festival, but most of all they appreciate your attendance.

07/28/2024

Exciting news for the 55th Annual Sorghum Festival! The original team of previous workers (Former Blairsville Jaycees) have resumed operation of The Blairsville Sorghum Festival. It's going to be a fantastic show for the 2024 Fall season! We are looking forward to seeing everyone at the Parade, Festival and Square Dances!!! Mark your calendars!! 2nd and 3rd Weekends in October.