LAURIE WEIR
After a quarter-century of celebrating all things garlic, the Perth Lions Club has made the difficult decision to cancel its annual Garlic Festival held mid-summer, citing feasibility issues. The club made the announcement on Feb. 23 via its Facebook page and website, stating that after much discussion, members voted to discontinue the event going forward.
“Regretfully, after many discussions among our members, it was passed at our last meeting that after 25 successful years, we are cancelling the Perth Lions Garlic Festival going forward. It was a difficult decision to make, nevertheless, it is no longer feasible for the members of the Perth Lions Club to carry on with the garlic festival,” the statement read.
The news was met with a wave of disappointment from festival goers, vendors, and community members who had come to cherish the summer event. Many took to social media to express their sadness, with some reminiscing about the memories made over the years.
“Sad and disappointed to see. This was a great event for the people of Perth as well as tourists. Makes me worried for this town with all these buildings sitting empty & now things like this happening,” wrote Callie Eileen.
Vendors also weighed in, acknowledging the impact the festival had on their businesses. Stewart’s Honey, a long-time vendor, responded: “As a business, times change and some issues cannot be fixed. We have to say it was always run very professionally, and we met some very helpful garlic sellers who shared their knowledge. We will miss the customers that return and have so enjoyed our time in Perth.”
While the Lions Club did not specify the exact reasons behind the cancellation, speculation among residents and festival supporters pointed to an aging volunteer base and declining membership in service clubs. Several commenters suggested that a lack of volunteers played a major role in the festival’s demise.
“As a person that runs many events, I can guess that the same people have been running this event for many years, and memberships in clubs like the Lions have been declining over the years. Getting volunteers is the hardest thing for most events, not the planning. If all the people posting on here got together and joined the Lions Club or at least committed to helping out, my feeling is they could keep it going,” wrote Darrell Bartraw.
Others proposed that a new group take over the festival or that the town step in to support it. “Perhaps the Lions could have asked ‘who’ and not ‘how.’ There would be a dedicated new group to run the festival. Doubtless, the Lions are ready to move on, but I suggest Perth continue the Garlic Festival at another location,” suggested Mark Czubak.
Some community members turned their frustration toward local leadership. “What a shame. This town is slowly losing its mojo. Empty industrial buildings, nothing but unneeded décor stuff in stores downtown, expensive yuppie-style new eateries, nowhere to buy any normal household or personal items other than chain stores,” commented Helen Gamble.
Despite the disappointment, many thanked the Lions Club for 25 years of dedication. “Thank you to all of the volunteer members over the past 25 very successful years,” wrote Sheri Mahon-Fournier, “for the hard work you have done to bring a fun-filled and worthwhile community activity to our town!”
