PROSPERITY — The Town of Prosperity is about to be Hoppin’, celebrating a variety of local arts and crafts stores and more than 35 juried vendors in The Square at Prosperity’s Hoppin’ Festival from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. May 6.

There is something for everyone at Prosperity Hoppin’, whether it’s the certified 5K run and two-mile walk, architectural and history walking tours, children play zone, food and live music.

“We do have a new certified running route this year. It was just too hard to set up in The Square and have those people moving when you’ve got runners coming through. So we’re going to try it and see how it goes,” said town administrator Karen Livingston. “We usually have over 100 runners and we hope to have that this year. I’m excited about the trail. It’s new and kind of up hills and valleys and it should be a safer route.”

Prosperity Hoppin’ started out as a community event, originally being called Lakefest to welcome lake residents into Prosperity and later evolving into Prosperity Hoppin’ in 2001.

This year, Prosperity Hoppin’ will focus on Roots and Recall in the Depot. There will be a representative dedicated to linking family data to a specific address in the pursuit of local history on site.

Attendees are encouraged to bring family photos and other memorabilia to preserve a place in time while building family history and genealogy pages.

For more information on Roots and Recall, visit their website www.rootsandrecall.com.

Parking for the public will be at Grace Church, by the fire department, First Community Bank, First Citizens Bank, Town Hall and the Civic Center.

“We’ll have music in The Square from Johnny Merck and Munson Summer and two food trucks available from Steel Horse and A Matter of Taste. Johnny Merck and his band will be performing from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m and Munson Summer will perform from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. We’ve also added this year funnel cakes, fried Oreos, homemade ice cream and Italian ice,” said Livingston.

There will also be an art show where first, second, third and an honorable mention will be awarded in each category of arts and crafts at The Square. A community market will also be open to attendees.

The Square will be blocked off between 8 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. for set up to begin.

“A lot of our vendors have been here in the past and it’s kind of a good mix. We had 17 confirmed for the market and I think now they’re up to 21 arts and craft vendors. But the last minute push hasn’t come in yet. We have 30 spots for the market so we’re a little over halfway there,” said Livingston. “We have a lot going on, but there’s absolutely something for everybody to do.”

A vendor from the 2016 Prosperity Hoppin’.
https://www.newberryobserver.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/web1_Hoppin-.jpgA vendor from the 2016 Prosperity Hoppin’. Andrew Wigger | The Newberry Observer

By Kelly Duncan

kduncan@civitasmedia.com

Reach Kelly Duncan at 803-768-3123 ext. 1868 or on Twitter @TheNBOnews.