The show will go on at The Village Green in Cashiers this weekend following a Monday board meeting where members voted to move forward with the annual Cashiers Valley Leaf Festival scheduled for Friday through Sunday.
“We spent the past several days talking to our stakeholders, our sponsors, area business owners, our emergency management officials, and ultimately decided to continue with the festival as planned,” The Village Green Executive Director Ashlie Mitchell said. “We will have 95 vendors, live music, and hopefully we can help our community by having a fun and safe event for everyone to enjoy.”
Mitchell noted that all vendors have been asked to bring their own supplies and groceries from their homes and not overwhelm local retailers who are still assisting residents of Jackson County following Hurricane Helene, which tore through the area two weeks ago.
“We are also encouraging our visitors and guests to buy their groceries, supplies, donation items, etc. off the mountain before they come up,” Mitchell said. “We don’t want to put any additional strain on our local resources for our residents.”
Because the leaf festival is always a well attended community event, the three-day showcase will offer ample opportunities for attendees to give back to those in need following the storm across Western North Carolina.
“The Village Green is donating 10 percent of the fees we’ve collected from our vendors to the Highlands Cashiers Health Foundation hurricane relief fund, and we will also be donating all proceeds from the sales of our Christmas ornaments,” Mitchell said. “During the festival we will be taking donations for the Fishes and Loaves Food Pantry, Highlands Emergency Council, and IFC Food Pantry in Highlands. Friday night’s concert will also serve as a benefit with all monetary donations going toward relief efforts locally.”
Mitchell noted that The Village Green suffered some minor damage during Hurricane Helene, but the facility is back up and running at full capacity.
“We had a couple of trees come down, but luckily not on any buildings, and our grounds crew was out there as soon as the weather cleared getting those cleaned up,” Mitchell said. “And of course, flooding is always an issue since we are the low point of Cashiers, but other than the road being closed for a while it wasn’t bad. We were very fortunate.”
The Cashiers Valley Leaf Festival hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday and Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday. The festival is free and open to the public. For more information, visit villagegreencashiersnc.com.