Special to the News-Herald

Every October for the past 26-years, Suffolk has been the site of one of the state’s best loved and most attended events; &uot;Peanut Fest.&uot;

Once you experience one of these exciting family oriented festivals, you’ll come back year after year just as more than 200,000 people do annually. This year, Suffolk Festivals Inc., along with more than 300 volunteers, is staging this fantastically entertaining event at the Suffolk Executive Airport where those attending will find food, fun, games and rides galore. In a nutshell, it’s all fantastic fun!

The excitement begins Thursday, Oct. 7, and runs through Sunday, Oct. 10, 2004. Festivities kick off at 3 p.m. with the &uot;Suffolk Ruritan’s 27th Annual Shrimp Feast.&uot; Now, the name of the event is a dead giveaway of the main course, but along with a $25 ticket for some of the best food found in the south, attendees will also enjoy and dance to a little bit of country, some old time rock n’ roll and some new hot hits.

As the Shrimp Feast winds down at 7 p.m., you can head on into the Peanut Fest grounds just in time for the lights, cameras and action of one of the best carnivals on the East Coast. That is a fact proven by the thousands of people who come from as far north as Canada and as far south as Florida, but they also come from Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina and even New York to take part in this celebration of Suffolk’s rich agricultural heritage and the fall harvest.

On Thursday, Oct. 7, the &uot;Midway&uot; opens with its wonderfully colorful lights and the aromas of foods that lure even the most diet conscious to taste the tempting varieties of foods, including everything from funnel cakes to fabulous North Carolina pit cooked barbecue and frozen custard.

On Friday, Oct. 8, the excitement of &uot;Poco,&uot; a group with two former members of the &uot;Buffalo Springfield&uot; will light up the Main Stage with one of their incendiary live performances. .

&uot;The Edwin McCain Band&uot; will rock out the night

on

Saturday, Oct. 9 with some good old southern rock.

On Sunday, Oct. 10, those attending the closing day of Peanut Fest will get a double dose of great talent along with many other exciting events taking place. BNA recording artist Rachel Proctor explodes onto the scene with some of the best of her debut album, &uot;Days Like This.&uot;

Peanut Fest has been publicized in many magazines including &uot;Southern Living&uot; and &uot;Virginia Business.&uot; The festival’s famous &uot;Peanut Butter Sculpting Contest&uot; has attracted many well known personalities including Mickey Mouse and Goofy!

The people of Suffolk first opened their city to welcome harvest time visitors more than 50 years ago. The peanut, along with other crops was celebrated because it was the city’s primary source of revenue. The parade and the huge pile of peanuts annually dumped into Washington Square in the heart of downtown were just the beginning.

The Suffolk Executive Airport, just off Route 13, is the permanent site for the celebration and there is plenty of parking.