Lauriston/Thompson Pen 4-H Club Stew Festival Returns

The annual stew festival, organised by the Lauriston/Thompson Pen Community 4-H Club in St. Catherine, makes a grand return on Saturday, November 5, following a two-year COVID-19-induced hiatus.

Persons attending the event, which is slated for Brooklyn Park in Thompson Pen, Spanish Town, will be treated to the usual culinary favourites such as stewed rabbit, mango, June plum, goat, chicken, plantain, egg, and guinep.

Founder of the club, Shian Christie, told JIS News that several new activities have been introduced this year, including ‘grease the pig’ and ‘catch the duck’ contests.

“We will be giving persons a chance to catch a greased and slippery pig or to be blindfolded and catch a duck for a chance to win cash prizes,” Mr. Christie said.

The Jamaica 4-H Clubs will also be on location, providing healthy meal ideas and demonstrating the preparation of these for sampling.

According to Mr. Christie, more than 40 public and private-sector entities are slated to participate in the festival to provide patrons with the opportunity to engage in business networking, while enjoying the day’s activities.

These include Tax Administration of Jamaica (TAJ), as well as entities that will provide health check-ups and insurance sign-ups. The festival will also feature a farmers’ market.

Mr. Christie, who said the event usually attracts more than 2,000 attendees, is anticipating a greater turnout for this year’s 16th anniversary.

Main sponsors, Turbo Plus, will be staging a packet redemption contest as their own crowd-pulling strategy.

Through this contest, patrons can bring in as many empty or partially used Turbo Plus packets, to win an array of prizes.

There will also be a marching band and children’s rides, in addition to live performances by gospel artiste Lubert Levy and school choirs from Television Jamaica’s ‘All Together Sing’ competition, among others.

The event takes place from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and admission is free.

Proceeds from the festival will be used to support club members sitting the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) exams and purchase school items, among other things.

“I would like to say thank you to all our sponsors and thanks to everyone who will take part in this stew festival. To the patrons… just come in your mask, get ready to be sanitised and have a good time,” Mr. Christie said.