PHOTO COURTESY OF SHERI KONNINGRUD
There will be no excuses for boredom on Saturday. After all, there are two all-day festivals taking place in Hermiston.
Local residents and visitors can take in the annual Hermiston FunFest in downtown Hermiston, as well as the Purple Ridge Lavender Festival on Bridge Road. Now in its fourth year, the Lavender Festival kicks off at 10 a.m. and continues throughout the day until things wrap up around 6 p.m.
Click Here for a Preview of Hermiston FunFest.
Held at the lavender farm owned by Jim and Sheri Konningrud, the Lavender Festival will feature wine tasting, art, antiques, food, music and, of course, plenty of lavender. The farm will be offering U-Pick lavender, lavender oil from the farm’s distillery, lavender plant sales and a variety of other lavender products and gifts from the Konningrud’s farm boutique.
All proceeds from gate admissions will benefit Martha’s House, a family homeless shelter in Hermiston.
April Hutcheson, volunteer coordinator for the Purple Ridge Lavender Festival, said a new feature at this year’s festival will be a display of vintage cars by the Three Rivers Model T Club.
“We’re excited to have these classics in the lavender fields,” she said.
Hutcheson said the festival attracts lavender lovers from around the region.
“Lavender lovers love the smell, the relaxation of being in the scenic fields and just enjoy being able to pick lavender and learn more about it while experiencing the fun festival activities,” she said.
But you don’t have to be a lavender connoisseur to have a good time at the festival. Music will be performed throughout the day by area bands such as the Brad and Bruce Power Duo, the Dakota Brown Band, the No Shows, Rocky Blythe & 2 Faced Johnny, and Jeremy Neufeld.
Click Here for Complete Lavender Festival Schedule
And if you have a sweet tooth (and, really, who doesn’t?), the Martha’s House lavender refreshment booth will offer traditional lavender lemonade, lavender sugar cookies, lavender dry soda pop, lavender lemonade cupcakes from the Frost Me Sweet Bakery, lavender/lemon Yo Country Frozen Yogurt and – new this year – lavender Italian sodas.
Another new feature this year will be a lavender-themed, limited-seating dinner for about 50 people after the festival.
And to make it easier for folks to enjoy both the Hermiston FunFest and the Lavender Festival, a Tom Denchel Ford courtesy shuttle bus will take people from FunFest out to the Lavender Festival and back every hour.
General admission is a suggested donation of $5 and $10 for wine tasting. Hutcheson said most of the vendors at the Lavender Festival will take credit cards, but food vendors will accept cash only. The Lavender Festival is located at 29081 Bridge Road in Hermiston.
