The 60th Annual Mattituck Lions Club Strawberry Festival kicked off with hulling night yesterday.
“We have some special things planned for our 60th festival,” said Lion Phil Centonze.
New this year is a professional high wire act that will perform “death defying” shows on Saturday, he said; also on the agenda are new state-fair quality rides, including a vintage carousel.
“Plus we will have the biggest fireworks display we have ever had,” he said.
The annual event, Centonze said, “means different things to different people on the North Fork. For the people who attend, it is a fun day with lots to do, see and enjoy. It certainly is the unofficial start of summer. Father’s Day weekend was always picked because it was the time of year the local strawberry crop was at its height of readiness for the sweetest ripest berries.”
The Mattituck Lions have always been dedicated to giving back to the community, Centonze said. “Ever since the festival, which used to be the Saturday before Father’s Day only, expanded,the members of the Mattituck Lions made a personal sacrifice, in that many of us would no longer celebrate this day with our children at home. For all of us who are Mattituck Lions it is a hard job but the way we can serve the community we love by raising money to help the many needy charities here at home and which Lions generally support.”
Many organizations benefit from the proceeds, he said.
Personally, the festival holds a host of memories for Centonze. “When the festival is done, seeing the sense of accomplishment and exhaustion on my fellow Lions always makes me smile,” he said.
Centonze said for full details on the event, festival goers should check the Mattituck Lions Club Strawberry Festival website.
In addition, he invited the community to come out Thursday night for hulling night, a well-loved tradition during which hundreds hull thousands of strawberries in a night filled with laughter, music, and memories.
“It is a unique way the community gets together to serve one another,” he said.
The schedule for the Mattituck Lions Club 60th annual Strawberry Festival, held on Route 48 at Strawberry Field in Mattituck, is as follows:
Thursday
Hulling: 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Carnival: 6;30 p.m. to 11 p.m.
Pay-one-price ride bracelet: $20; single ride tickets available
Free admission on Thursday.
Friday
5 p.m. until 11 p.m.
Admission: Adults and children age 12 and over: $5
Children six to 11: $2
Children five and under: free
Pay-one-price ride bracelet: $30; single ride tickets available
Fireworks: 9:30 p.m.
Saturday
11 a.m. to 11P p.m.
Admission: Adults and children age 12 and up: $7
Children six to 11: $3
Children five and under: free
Pay-one-price bracelet: $30, good from opening to 6 p.m. and a second pay-one-price bracelet, $30, good from 4 p.m. to closing; single ride tickets available.
Fireworks: 9:30 p.m.
Sunday
11 a.m. until 5 p.m.
Admission: Adults and children age 12 and up: $7
Children six to 11: $3
Children five and under: free
Pay-one price ride bracelet: $30
Single ride tickets available
No admission charge for fathers on Father’s Day when accompanied by paid child.
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