It is hard for me to believe the Daniel Boone Pioneer Festival has been going on in Winchester as long as it has. I have been to almost all of them and each year I love going to see what is new.

There is so much I love about the festival. I love the smell of the festival. I love the excitement of the festival. I love seeing my friends and neighbors at the festival. I love seeing my friends from the adjoining counties at the festival.

I am always amazed at the artists and the talent that comes to our festival. I love the food booths and the craft booths. I have bought many gifts for Christmas through the years at the Pioneer Festival.

Our festival has something for everyone. I think if you do not find something to buy at the Pioneer Festival, you have not looked hard enough. Even if you go and just look, you will have had a fun day.

Hopefully, the weather will smile for us this year and not be too hot, too cold or too rainy, but just right. As you all know, not much will ruin the spirit of our festival. I am hoping for the vendors’ sake the weather does not create a problem.

When the festival comes to town, I automatically get in a fall mood. Seeing the booths decorated for fall always makes me want to go home and decorate. This year I decided to get decorated before I go to the festival. I am sure I will see something there that will make me wish I had waited.

I am really excited this year because two dear friends, Terry Grainger and his wife Sue, will attend the festival and will have a booth in the gymnasium.

Terry has written three books and he and Sue have been missionaries to Ghana, Africa. His latest book is called “First Love Devotions” and is written from his experience of over 50 years as a pastor and teacher.

Terry will be there to sell and autograph his books. Terry was recently named pastor emeritus at the Pauley Swamp Baptist Church in South Carolina. This is one of the many honors this man has had. I hope each of you will stop by his booth and welcome him to our town on Saturday. You will enjoy talking to both of them.

I would like for Winchester to shine for our visitors this weekend. We will have many visitors in our small town this weekend. Hopefully, we will put our best foot forward and greet everyone with a smile.

We should thank the vendors who have worked so hard to bring their products to our town. It would be great for them to leave with a good feeling about our small town.

I am proud of our town and love it so much. I just want everyone everywhere to feel the way I do about Winchester. I also feel we need to say thank you to our festival committee for the hard work it does every year to make our festival the special event that it is.

I hope after this weekend is over everyone who attended the event left with a smile on their face.

Sue Staton is a Clark County native who grew up in the Kiddville area. She is a wife, mother and grandmother who is active at First United Methodist Church and her homemakers group, Towne and Country Homemakers.