‘We carry on and we persevere’: North Quabbin Garlic & Arts Festival continues through nor’easter

ORANGE — A nor’easter and related power outage did little to dampen spirits at the annual North Quabbin Garlic & Arts Festival over the weekend, when people came from all over to take in the usual exhibits, music and garlic-inspired cuisine.

The “festival that stinks” has triumphed through soggy weather — including hurricanes — in the past and organizers said the 28th rendition was no exception.

“Yesterday was an amazing day. There was literally a clear circle of no rain all day, and we had great attendance and the exhibitors were super happy,” festival committee member Deb Habib said on Sunday. “We’re a rain-or-shine event, and people show up.

“People are here, the music is happening, people are wandering,” she continued. “It’s been a perfectly fine day and the earth needs the moisture. And what we like to tell people is, ‘We show up and we carry on and we persevere.’ And that’s an important message for all of us at this time.”

Strong winds and rain caused a nearby transformer to blow, knocking out some power to the festival. But Habib said many food vendors weren’t affected because they use electric vehicles to power their booths. This, she said, is a testament to the importance and reliability of electric vehicles.

“We were able to rally and bring in a couple of generators to keep people going for a little while,” she explained, adding that National Grid worked diligently to resolve the transformer issue.

Habib’s husband, Ricky Baruc, said the emergency exemplified how neighbors can help one another.

“These festivals are really about community,” he said as Stoner Will & The Narks played music in the background. “You’ve just got to make it happen — don’t get stopped by it, you know?”

The idea for the festival arose from a conversation between Baruc and woodworker Jim Fountain in 1998. Baruc mentioned there were not many places to sell the garlic he grew on his farm, and Fountain said he had the same issue with his artwork. This led to another conversation with a group of five neighbors, each of whom contributed $20 to try to make a go of it.

The first festival was held in 1999 at Seeds of Solidarity Farm, but the space proved too small. So, Dorothy Forster started offering the land her father, Clifford Forster Sr., operated as a dairy farm from 1926 to 1941.

Elijah Lagreze, who owns Boulder Top Farm in Montague, operates Vibesman’s Jerk Shack at the festival. He said it certainly wasn’t the busiest North Quabbin Garlic & Arts Festival in his eight or nine years as a vendor, but some folks always check it out.

“You get the hardcore garlic people that come out,” he said.

Vibesman’s Jerk Shack served a garlic scape pesto mac and cheese to play into the festival’s theme.

“I grow a lot of the produce we put in our stuff here,” Lagreze said. “The scape is the top of the garlic plant that turns into a flower. And what we do is we cut the scape before it flowers, to give more energy to the bulb to make the garlic grow bigger — super garlicy, really good flavor.”

Fiona Watkins, who recently started as a student at Curry College in Milton, enjoyed a “Stinkin’ Cheeseburger” with garlic cheese from Chase Hill Farm’s booth. She and her father, Ryan Wollard, discovered the festival by chance when they saw signs for it while in the area visiting New Salem Preserves & Heritage Cider.

“It’s fantastic,” Wollard said as his daughter nibbled on a fried dough topped with strawberries. “It’s exactly what we needed today, and we didn’t even know it.”

Hannah Morano, owner of Sweet Birch Herbals in Ashfield and a mentee of Habib and Baruc since she was in college, was in her eighth year as a vendor. She said attendees were in good spirits despite the weather.

“People who are here know what they want, and they’re here to shop, so that’s good,” she said. “Everybody that is here, it seems like they’re happy to be here and wore their rain gear. Everyone’s always really positive. I think this is the best festival around.”

The festival held its popular raw garlic-eating contest on Saturday and had its “Portal to the Future,” which promotes the benefits of renewable energy and being self-sufficient. The portal’s latest addition was Camp Caravan, part of the Millers River Educational Cooperative, which served as an educational space for practical skills and included a sharpening wheel where people could sharpen hand tools.

One of the festival’s two-day visitors was Wendell Town Crier Kathy-Ann Becker. Decked out in her full costume — complete with tri-corner hat — the official American Guild of Town Criers member delivered some ceremonial cries for the occasion.

“I gave tribute to that which brings us together — garlic — and to the poets and the innovators and the musicians and the food growers,” she said. “It’s been really a fun day.”

Becker mentioned that she attended in memory of longtime friend and mentor Karl Bittenbender, who died in November. She said Bittenbender was a longtime Garlic & Arts volunteer who staffed the entrance.