For almost 40 years, homemade sausage has been the hands-down highlight of the Fall Bazaar at Providence United Methodist Church.

According to Bobbie Cowan, one of the coordinators of this Saturday’s event, Providence men will gather at the church Friday to make 600 pounds of the delicacy.

“The men of the church get together, cut it up, grind it up, season it and package it,” Cowan said. “It’s been going on for almost 40 years at Providence. It’s an original recipe from a man who is deceased now.”

But the event, running from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the church at 3109 Providence Road — the big white church at the corner with Pruden Boulevard — will feature much more than sausage.

Also on the food front, cheddar cheese will be cut straight from the wheel, the old-fashioned way.

A country store will sell canned items, sweet potatoes and homemade chicken salad.

There will be a bakeshop, crafts of various kinds and an outdoor shop with furniture, glassware, jewelry, and bric-a-brac.

“We have an outdoor grill,” Cowan said, “with hotdogs, sausages, hamburgers, and the famous funnel cakes.”

Other food for sale will include homemade vegetable soup, barbecue sandwiches and ham biscuits.

There will also be activities for children, Cowan said, including face-painting and pumpkin painting.

“The festival has been going on for about 40 years,” she said. “It raises money for missions and the church — the upkeep of the church. The church was used as a hospital in the Civil War.”

The event usually draws close to 1,000 visitors, according to Cowan. “We have cars parked all the way down the road,” she said.

A lot of them will be returning to take home some sausage of a kind that can’t be bought at the grocery store.

“We have a lot of regulars that are here about 9 a.m. to get their sausage,” Cowan said.

Cowan invited anyone wanting more information to contact her at 539-9444.