The Ohio Pawpaw Festival is a fun-filled, educational community event celebrating one of America’s largest native tree fruits, the pawpaw (Asimina triloba). This all-weekend event highlights the rich history and future possibilities of the pawpaw through delectable food and beverages, and a full line-up of presentations and activities that cover pawpaw growing, cooking, genetics, medical use and other topics related to sustainability. Special events at the festival include competitions for the best and biggest pawpaw, a pawpaw cook-off, a best pawpaw-related work of art and the ever-popular pawpaw-eating contest.

Schedule

September 15, 2023

Pawpaw Tent Schedule

4:30 PM    Pawpaw Permaculture and Walkabout, with Chris Chmiel of Integration Acres

5:15 PM    What the Heck Is a Pawpaw? with Rob Brannan from Ohio University

6:00 PM    Pawpaw Team Trivia! Put on your pawpaw thinking caps and join for fun and prizes (six people per team max, no minimum)

Ohio Country Fair Tent Schedule

7:00 PM   
Annual Pawpaw Square Dance with Burdock and Friends

Holistic Wellness Tent Schedule

5:30 PM   
Yoga and South Bath with Michelle Greenfield and Nate Kojun Hayes. Move your body with an energizing, all-levels yoga practice, accompanied by the soothing and healing sounds of crystal singing bowls, gongs, bells and other instruments

Music/Main Stage

4:30 PM   
Abstract Sounds

6:00 PM   
Noah Wotherspoon

7:30 PM   
Big Blitz

9:00 PM   
Son Little

10:30 PM   
Any Colour

Kids' Tent Schedule

4:00 PM   
Rising Appalachia: Creativity from your backyard - Get your hands dirty and immerse yourself in the possibilites presented by clay, sticks, leaves, and rocks

6:00 PM   
Humanz Vs Zombies: Nerf gun and sock bomb battle. Nerf guns available for first 15 participants. Please bring your own nerf gun if you have one. Safety goggles recommended but not required

Rural Action's Heritage Tent Schedule

5:30 PM   
The Deer Hill Folk Tellers: Tales of Appalachia

Family Care Tent Schedule

4:00 PM   
Sensory Play Time and First Responder Communication Card Making with Rachel Dickel and the Autism Society

6:00 PM   
The Art of Belly Mapping With Laughing Moon Midwifery

September 16, 2023

Pawpaw Tent Schedule

10:15 AM   
So You Want to Grow Pawpaws with Ted Weeden of North American Pawpaw Growers Association

11:15 AM   
The Benefits of Utilizing Rootsuckers for Orchard Grafting of Pawpaw Trees, with James Dingus of the North American Pawpaw Growers Association

12:15 PM   
Best Pawpaw Contest; winners announced at 2 pm

1:15 PM   
City Pawpaws: From Urban Orchards to Landscaping, with urban farmer Justin Husher of the North American Pawpaw Growers Association

2:00 PM   
Best Pawpaw Contest (including biggest pawpaw) Winners Announced!

2:15 PM   
Cooking with Pawpaws I: Watch, Learn, and Eat! with Chef Dave Rudie and Deb Parmiter of Glenwood Community Club

3:30 PM   
Brewers Roundtable w/ Optional Pawpaw Beer Tasting ($30/person, includes souvenir taster; tickets available at 2 pm outside the Pawpaw Tent

4:45 PM   
The Essential Guide to Pawpaws: History, Resources, and Pro Tips, with Valerie Libbey of the North American Pawpaw Growers Association

5:45 PM   
Pawpaw Team Trivia! Put on your pawpaw thinking caps and join for fun and prizes (six people per team max, no minimum)

Ohio Country Fair Tent Schedule
10:30 AM   
Scything workshop with John Stock, Anthony Noble and Dale Francis

11:45 AM   
Living Compost with Gina Scarano of the Southeast Ohio Chapter of OEFFA

1:00 PM   
Teas and Tisanes, how to mix your own herbal blends with the Tea Lady Maureen Burns

2:15 PM   
Horizontal Bee Hives with Paul Patton

3:30 PM   
Bioregional Permaculture: Growing Greater Harmony With Native Ecosystems with Laura Northrup Poland of Strawberry Moon Farm

4:45 PM   
Growing Flax and Cotton for Textiles in Southeast Ohio with Lisa Heinz of the Southeast Ohio Fibershed

6:00 PM   
Traditional Broom Making with John Stathopoulos

Holistic Wellness Tent Schedule

9:30 AM   
Morning Yoga with Michelle Greenfield, RYT-500, Kripalu Mindful Outdoor Guide: Wake up and start your day with some energy. All levels yoga with Michelle will offer movement, breath, stretching and some fun

10:30 AM   
Exploring Meditation with Beth Backes: Follow the guided yoga practice with a meditation, or just come for the meditation. Beth will guide you in learning to cultivate mindfulness, reduce stress, and enhance your overall quality of life. All levels are welcome

11:30 AM   
Herb Walk and Plant Identification with Erika Galentin of Sovereignty Herbs: Take a walk along the Lake Snowden shore to identify and learn about local medicinal herbs

12:30 PM   
The Art of Mindful Eating for a Lifetime of Vitality with Maggie Freteke, Certified Holistic Health Practitioner and Yoga Teacher: Connect with what it means to eat with mindfulness for better health and a lifetime of vitality. This session will include some gentle chair yoga and breathwork, and is appropriate for everyone

1:45 PM   
Flying Crane Qi Gong with Gina Scarano: Qi Gong is the art of restoring balance and harmony to one's life through movement and breath. This class will focus on the circulation of energy through the scapula, upper spine, neck and head. No experience necessary

3:00 PM   
Mindfulness in Nature Forest Bathing Walk with Michelle Greenfield, RYT-500, Kripalu Mindful Outdoor Guide: Gather at the Holistic Wellness Tent to start this mindful walk with a little bit of movement, breath and centering. Then, take a gentle stroll along the lakeside with a guided forest bathing invitation and find a "sit spot" for an open-eyed, sensory awareness meditation. Finally, come together with the group with the option to share your experience

4:15 PM   
Embodied Practices for Calming Anxiety with Erin Finck of Trauma Sensitive Yoga Project, LLC: Experience the holistic practices that can support us through stress and anxiety by instilling an embodied sense of safety, strength and ease

Music/Main Stage

11:00 AM   
Steve Free

12:00 PM   
Chloe and the Steel Strings

1:30 PM   
Ben Davis Jr. and The Revelry

3:00 PM   
Large Mouth Brass Band

4:30 PM   
Good Morning Bedlam

5:30 PM    Pawpaw Eating Contest
6:00 PM   
Kalbells

7:30 PM   
Oh He Dead

9:00 PM   
Amythyst Kiah

11:00 PM   
The Vindys

Kids' Tent Schedule

10:00 AM   
Renee Ripple presents Kids' Yoga: Playful yoga with stories, songs, and games that is ideal for ages 3-6

11:00 AM   
Pond Study with Rural Action: Grab a net and explore the fascinating creatures living at the water's edge

12:00 PM   
Block Printing with United Plant Savers: Come block print your own flag to take home, using one of United Plant Savers' at-risk plant stamps!

1:00 PM   
TBD

2:00 PM   
Capoeira for Beginners: Join us for a demonstration, intro class, and Roda and explore the movement and music of this exciting Afro-Brazillian dance, fight, game. All ages and skills welcome

3:00 PM   
Freeze dance and creative movement. Come move your body with dancers from Factory Street Studio!

4:00 PM   
Ohio Valley Musuem of Discovery: Hands-on activity TBD

5:00 PM   
Padded Sword (Boffer) Making Station - Come make your own padded sword, also known as a Boffer, to use in the Boffer Battle to follow! $5 suggested donation

6:00 PM   
Rising Appalachia: Great Boffer Battle-- Join us for the epic annual Pawpaw Fest sword fight to the fake death. Staff will lead participants through a series of fun and exciting boffing games. All ages welcome

7:00 PM   
Ecstatic Dance Athens is coming to the Pawpaw Kids' Tent! A safe space to dance, move and express yourself freely. All are welcome

Rural Action's Heritage Tent Schedule

10:00 AM   
Selective Migration and the Production of Ohio’s Regional Cultural Landscapes in the Early Republic: A Genealogical Geography, with Timothy G. Anderson

11:30 AM   
Life as a Nineteenth Century Herbalist and Midwife in Appalachian Ohio, with Pat Anderson

1:00 PM   
Athens' Black Wall Street: A stop on the Route to Freedom, with Dr. Tee Ford-Ahmed

2:30 PM   
Ohio's Hopewell Earthworks and UNESCO World Heritage with John Hancock

4:00 AM   
Stories and Tales from Red Row Holler, the Town That Lives on Through its Legacies, with Nancy Devol Rose and Lois Elaine Hutchinson

5:30 PM   
Partnering to Appreciate Appalachia with Amy Grove, Madison Donohue, Emily Bartholic, Tiffany Piko & Julie Finlay

Family Care Tent Schedule

10:00 AM   
The Benefits of Infant Massage with Julie Gladney, BS, LPN, IBCLC, CIMI, Certified Instructor of Infant Massage, Ebb & Flow Lactation Services

11:00 AM   
Breastfeeding Q & A with Julie Gladney, BS, LPN, IBCLC, CIMI, Board Certified Lactation Consultant, Ebb & Flow Lactation Services

12:00 PM   
Tips and Tricks for a Physiological Birth with Laughing Moon Midwifery

2:00 PM   
Skins and Skulls: Nature Sensory Activity with Rural Action Environmental Educators

4:00 PM   
Story Time and Infant Toddler Play Group with Youth Services Librarian Rachel

September 17, 2023

Pawpaw Tent Schedule

10:15 AM   
Pawpaw 101 with Sarah Francino of The™ Ohio State University

11:15 AM   
Pawpaw Cook-off Watch the judges describe the delicious pawpaw recipes!

12:30 PM   
Does Money Grow on Trees in North Carolina or am I Just Crazy? The Journey from Pawpaw Seeds to Orchard with Susan Owen, The Lily Patch Farm (Vilas, NC)

1:30 PM   
Pawpaw Cook-off Winners Announced!

Ohio Country Fair Tent Schedule

10:30 AM   
Ecological Chaplaincy: How to be with the Earth in times of Ecological Uncertainty with Laura Ann Bergman of The Farm at Seminary Hill

11:45 AM   
Solar DIY (interactive) with Tom Rapini and Valerie Garrett

1:00 PM   
Finding a New Generation to Steward Your Land with Badger Johnson of Southern Ohio Chestnut Company and Jerah Pettibone of OEFFA

2:15 PM   
Kefir Making, The Oldest Dairy Product known to Man with Warren Taylor (free grains available to take home afterwards)

3:30 PM   
Raising Quail for Eggs and Meat with Jerah Pettibone of Pettibone Urban Game

Holistic Wellness Tent Schedule

10:00 AM   
The Art of Happiness and Movement with Kate Reynolds, MA LPCC: Did you know that joy, happiness, and peace are mental skills you can train? In this session you’ll unlock new perspectives to shift your way of thinking while increasing your ability to feel more positive and grow your toolkit for happiness. Session includes supportive movement to enhance mental ease. Adaptations and accommodations will be provided. This session is suited to folks who are new to mindfulness, as well as those who are well-practiced. This class will be informative, light-hearted, and experiential

11:15 AM   
Sound Bath with Nate Kojun Hayes of Sacred Waves Sound Work: Relax in stillness as you listen to the soothing and healing sounds of crystal singing bowls, gongs, bells and other instruments

12:30 PM   
Exploring Acupuncture and Demonstration with Michelle Stobart, Licensed Acupuncturist, of Inhale Wellness Studio: This presentation will be a combination of conversation and demonstration to give participants an overview of Chinese Medicine, Acupuncture and the various other techniques used in treatment

1:45 PM   
Introduction to Qi Gong with David Russell: Enliven your energy, dissolve tension and stress through Qi Gong: the art of effortless power. Qi Gong is a mind, body, spirit practice that uses: posture, stretching, breathing techniques, and flowing movements to cultivate life force energy and bring balance between your emotions and your physical self

Music/Main Stage

11:30 AM   
Alexander HS Marching Band

12:30 PM   
Wonky Tonk

2:00 PM   
Caitlin Kraus

3:30 PM   
Maria Carrelli

Kids' Tent Schedule

10:00 AM   
Fire building with Rural Action: Learn to build and start a fire with Rural Action's Envinronmental Education team

11:00 AM   
Solid Ground School Storytime. Bring your young child to join a relaxing story time in the shade featuring seasonal songs, handclaps, and a local Paw Paw story

12:00 PM   
Hop, howl and hoot along to the music of Michael Frogman

1:00 PM   
Community Food Initiatives presents: Activity TBD

2:00 PM   
Kids' Drum Circle with Lawrence Greene of Ugata. Drums provided for first 10 participants. Bring your own drums if you have them

3:00 PM   
Bubble Wands with Rising Appalachia: Make your own bubble wands and help fill the sky with beautiful bubbles

4:00 PM   
Game of scramble: All ages welcome for everyones favorite varient of dodgeball

Rural Action's Heritage Tent Schedule

10:00 AM   
Madison Donohue: What is Appalachian Understories?

11:30 AM   
Indigenous Roots of the Pawpaw and its Natural and Cultural History with Brian Koscho

1:00 PM   
Glouster Oral History Project with Maggi Gifford

Family Care Tent Schedule

10:00 AM   
Breastfeeding Q & A with Julie Gladney, BS, LPN, IBCLC, CIMI, Board Certified Lactation Consultant, Ebb & Flow Lactation Services

12:00 PM   
Sensory Play Time and First Responder Communication Card Making with Rachel Dickel and the Autism Society

Date:
September 15-17, 2023

Hours:
Fri - 4 p.m. - midnight
Sat - 10 a.m. - midnight
Sun - 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Location:
Lake Snowden, 5900 US-50, Albany, OH  45710

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