SPECIAL TO THE JOURNAL:

Old timey, down home, traditional country family fun is the hallmark of the Annual Glenwood Festival at the Well coming up this year on May 21.  There are children’s activities, including the Beauty and Beau Pageant, plus local arts and crafts, carnival food vendors and a non-stop lineup of South Alabama’s best entertainers all on stage from early morning to late at night; and those are just some of what 23 years of festival goers have come to expect and appreciate each year on the third Saturday in May.

The little town of Glenwood is centered on an old “flowing” or Artesian well.  The “Flowing Well,” has been a gathering place near the confluence of Crenshaw, Coffee and Pike counties, since Glenwood first came into being in the mid-1800s. The streets and grounds surrounding the landmark flowing well will be filled to overflowing with food vendors, arts and crafts booths and lots of fun activities for the kids. Delicious smoked barbecue with all the trimmings will be served up by the Glenwood Volunteer Fire Department on site with take home quantities available until they sell out.

The Glenwood Festival promises to be one of Alabama’s best entertainment values, too.  Steve Holmes, long-time emcee for the event says, “This year we’ll have at least two newcomers to our stage as vocalist Joe smith performs for the first time on our stage, and Matt Holmes is another new addition.”

Also scheduled to perform are long time favorites like the Benton Brothers Bluegrass Company, Amanda, Dara and Tim Hale (also known as Cloudy With a Chance of Hale), Kat Deal, the Shebang Cloggers, the American Legion Line Dancers, Conecuh River Boys and Cindy Grider.

“We’ve had everything from local dancers and karaoke singers, to Grammy-winning songwriters and session musicians and everything in between,” Holmes added.

“There are usually some very well-known surprise guests, as well.”

The Festival kicks off with a parade at 9 a.m. and winds down with a street dance beginning at 7 p.m. featuring Lenny Trawick and the band Country Rhythm and Blues.  Reservations are still available for parade participants, tables for the street dance and vendor booths.  For more information you may contact (334) 335-3165 or (334) 335-3426.

Tickets for the festival are available at the gate and run $5.00 for adults and $1.00 for kids under twelve years of age, and they’re good all day and night. The Glenwood Festival at the Well foundation supports a scholarship program for young people from in and around Glenwood and is an annual event of downtown Glenwood, Ala., held on the third Saturday in May. This year marks the 23rd annual festival on May 21.