GREENFIELD — Organizers of Saturday’s inaugural SummerFest hope to raise $5,000 to benefit the Franklin County Fairgrounds.
SummerFest will take place at the fairgrounds on Wisdom Way from noon to 8 p.m., with doors opening at 11 a.m. While admission is free, donations will be accepted. Michael Nelson, president of the Franklin County Agricultural Society that operates the fairgrounds, said any profits will be reinvested into the property’s long-term revitalization.
Although this year is the first festival under the SummerFest branding, the idea of a summer festival in Greenfield first took shape last year. That event, called Freedom Fest, was named so not only because it took place on Independence Day weekend, but also to celebrate a relaxing of COVID-19 health safety restrictions that allowed for the return of festivals.
Nelson said 2021’s festival was “unique.” Going into Freedom Fest, organizers were uncertain how things might go. He recalls how, at the time, the community was evenly split between those still wary of the virus and those looking for a return to normalcy. Nevertheless, 1,000 people showed up.
Starting from this year, the event has been rebranded to SummerFest. Nelson said the decision to change the name came about because this year’s festival occurred later in July, and the organizers wanted a name that would be more reflective of events going on at this time of year.
Nelson hopes to raise around $5,000 to support the fairgrounds through SummerFest, with Freedom Fest having raised $3,000 last year.
SummerFest will feature 25 vendors this year. Of these, seven will be serving food, including burgers, fried pork, ice cream and other staples of the summer. On top of these will be around 20 other vendors selling wares and crafts.
In addition, the festival will feature performances from five musical acts: No Lens, which plays folk-infused reggae rock; multi-instrumentalist Austin James; Jimmy Just Quit, a four-piece rock/groove cover band from western Massachusetts; Zane Provost, whose music is influenced by indie rock; and folk singer Adelaide Faye.
Scott Kuzmeskus, entertainment director for SummerFest, noted that he booked musicians representing a wide variety of genres, wanting to make sure that everyone has something to listen to.
“Even if I don’t enjoy the music,” Kuzmeskus said, “I want to make sure everyone enjoys something.”
Nelson believes that, over time, SummerFest will become as much a staple of Franklin County as the other events he has organized, such as the Great Falls Festival in Turners Falls, formerly known as Pumpkinfest.
“I hope that we’ve created an event that people will be excited to come to each year,” Nelson said.