BAILEYTON, Ala. – Some towns hold festivals. Baileyton, it turns out, holds its people close.
On Saturday, Oct. 31, Baileyton Town Park filled with hay bales and painted pumpkins, bounce houses and classic cars, sack races and sunflowers for the town’s first-ever Harvest at the Park. Neighbors wandered between vendor tents. Children raced from the merry-go-round to the Fun Zone. A principal took the plunge in a dunk tank for a good cause. And as the sun went down, the trunks opened and the candy came out.
For anyone walking in for the first time, it felt a little like stepping into a storybook town, the kind of place where everybody knows your name and the whole community turns out for every season.
That was exactly the point.
Finding Stars Hollow in Baileyton
When Baileyton Council members Kaleigha Fitch and Taran Garrison sat down to plan the town’s first Harvest at the Park, they shared the same vision: they wanted it to feel like Stars Hollow, the fictional hometown from the TV show “Gilmore Girls,” famous for its cozy town square, its quirky traditions and the way the whole community shows up for one another.
They had just two months to pull it off. Planning began in late August, with no event on the books and no plan already in place. The two women chose to fund the festival themselves, pooling their own money for a $2,000 budget.
They didn’t even need all of it. The festival came in under budget, at roughly $800 to $1,000, and yet drew a crowd far bigger than anyone expected. By the Council’s count, as many as 1,500 children turned out for the day’s festivities and the evening trunk or treat. That number doesn’t even count the countless family members, friends and neighbors of all ages, and quite a few costumed pets, who filled the park right alongside them.
A day to remember
From 10 a.m.-7 p.m., the festival had something around every corner, with live music all day from Hudd Music and Jesse Priest.
The morning kicked off with the “Horsepower at the Harvest” car show, where gleaming classic trucks and hot rods lined the fence competing for Best in Show, People’s Choice and Most Unique, along with a 50/50 raffle and door prizes. At the same time, players took to the courts for “Pickleball in the Patch,” a free doubles tournament.
The afternoon brought a free cornhole doubles tournament and “The Great Harvest Sack Race,” with divisions from ages 5 and under all the way up to teens and adults. At 3 p.m., furry friends strutted their stuff in the “Howl-O-Ween at the Harvest” pet costume contest, and at 5 p.m., families showed off their creativity in the “Homemade at the Harvest” costume contest.
All day long, the free Fun Zone offered bounce houses and carnival games, while food trucks and community vendors set up beneath rows of tents and sunflowers stood tall against the fall sky.
Parkside School students had their own moment in the spotlight with “Picks of the Patch,” a colorful display of student-painted pumpkins, with the top designs proudly wearing prize ribbons.
From 1-2 p.m., Parkside students got the chance to take their shot at Principal Dr. Caleb Elrod in the dunk tank, and the one who finally sent him splashing was his very own daughter.
“All money raised from the dunking booth benefits Baileyton’s Baseball Boosters to assist with awards for the players at the end of the season,” Fitch said.
That evening, families returned for Trunk or Treat from 5-7.
A Council meeting with heart
Council meetings are not usually where you expect to find a lump in your throat. But when the Baileyton Town Council met Monday, Nov. 2, and Garrison gave her report on Harvest at the Park, the room changed.
Fitch and Garrison spoke with passion, and at times emotion, about what the festival meant to them and how the community had answered. They had been floored, they said, that so many people showed up, and that it cost the town practically nothing.
Both women recalled a moment in the middle of the festival when they looked up and locked eyes with each other from across the park, amazed. Families just kept pouring in. It was so moving, they said, that it brought them to tears, filled with love and gratitude for their community.
Mayor Pro Tem Dewayne Sumner shared something he had overheard from one festivalgoer that seemed to sum it all up: an event like this “does the heart good.”
Garrison then asked the Council to put Oct. 30 on the books for next year. Before that vote, the Council took another: a motion that Council members should no longer pay for the event out of their own pockets. Instead, the Council unanimously approved a $5,000 town budget for next year’s Harvest at the Park and Trunk or Treat.
Then Councilman Mark McKelvy made the motion to back the women’s request, putting Oct. 30, 2027, on the calendar for next year’s Halloween festivities. All said aye.
In a world where it is easy to feel disconnected, Harvest at the Park was a reminder of what a small town can do when a few people care enough to start something, and a whole community cares enough to show up.
Also at the meeting
The Council presented organizational support funds to Parkside School, represented by Elrod; the Baileyton Volunteer Fire Department, represented by Chief Zack McGee and Toby Houser; and the Baileyton Senior Center, represented by President Donna Kent and Pat Gilbert.
Mayor Benny Guthrie reported that Sen. Garlan Gudger secured $88,000 to fund road upgrades on Shedd Road and Dove Road. Guthrie said he will reach out to the Alabama Department of Transportation for details and next steps. The town also made its final payment to Ridgeline for hail damage repairs, completing that project.
The Council also discussed plans for Christmas, including street lights, a tree for the park and a tree lighting ceremony.
Coming up in Baileyton
Bargain Day: Saturday, Nov. 7, 8 a.m-noon
Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony: Friday, Dec. 4, at Baileyton Town Park. Gates open at 4:30 p.m., and the ceremony begins at 6. Santa Claus will be there for pictures with the children.
Town Council work session: Monday, Dec. 7, 6 p.m., Baileyton Town Hall
Regular Town Council meeting: Monday, Dec. 7, 7 p.m., Baileyton Town Hall
Baileyton Town Hall is located at 55 Fire Station Road. For more information, call 256-796-6447.
