HAWTHORNE- Pig kissing, calling and chasing contests all made the 5th Annual Hawthorne Hog Festival a squealing success at Saturday’s festival.
Event organizer Heather Surrency said that although the fireworks and softball tournament were cancelled because of the Gator football game, the community talent and involvement made for a huge success.
“Our big thing is to bring the community together by raising relationships and let people know what we have out here in Hawthorne,” Surrency said. “Gainesville is the number one city because of the small, neighboring cities like Hawthorne that have these special events.”
The festival hosted monster truck and pony rides, face painting, a farmers market, arts and crafts booths, a Democratic Party booth and barbeque cook-off contest. Winners of the cook-off included Daryl Henry and Randy Fraseer for the pork category and Foxy’s barbeque for both chicken and ribs categories.
Other local talent included performances from the Shell Choir from Hawthorne Elementary School and the Hawthorne Hornets Cheerleading Squad.
The 750-1000 people at the event throughout the day feasted on gumbo, marinated chicken sandwiches, hot dogs, funnel cakes and ice cream along with the return of the pig chasing competition for children ages 4-12.
All proceeds from the festival went to the Hawthorne Recreation Center for purchasing jerseys, equipment and other necessities to benefit the organization.
The event was founded in 2004 by Matt Surrency and is continued each year by volunteers and organizers from the Hawthorne Recreation Center including recreation office director, Jay Paulson.
“The festival went very well,” Paulson said. “It gets bigger and is growing every year.”
