FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Zoraida Lopez-Diago
Date: August 2, 2018
Phone:  914.234.6992 ext. 23
Zoraida@westchesterlandtrust.org
914.234.6992 ext. 23

Get ready for some good old-fashioned fun on Westchester’s oldest working farm.

Bedford Hills, NY – On Saturday, September 8th, from 4 – 7pm (rain date Sunday, September 9th, from 4 – 7pm), Westchester Land Trust and Somers Land Trust will co-host a Family Farm Festival at Stuart’s Fruit Farm in Somers, New York. Admission is free and food will be available for purchase. We invite you to join us!

This event is in celebration of the recent preservation of Stuart’s Fruit Farm, the oldest working farm in Westchester County, dating back to 1828. In April, Westchester Land Trust (WLT) completed a conservation easement that extinguishes the development rights on the farm’s 172 acres thereby ensuring the land remains available for agricultural use forever. In the absence of this conservation easement, the land could have been sold for residential development. WLT’s partners included New York State, Westchester County, the Town of Somers, Scenic Hudson Land Trust and Somers Land Trust.

The Family Farm Festival will feature family friendly activities, live music, craft beer and cider, food trucks and more. Festival goers of all ages will enjoy classic games including sack races and corn hole. There will also be hayrides through the orchard and a corn maze that is sure to have the whole family turning at every corner.

Guests are welcome to bring picnic baskets or can choose to purchase tasty bites and regional cider and beer. Local food trucks Mobile Pie Truck, Waffle Box, King Kone, and Sloppie Joes of Yonkers will be on hand serving wood fired pizza, Belgian waffles, and gourmet hot dogs, burgers, and sloppy joe sandwiches. Adults can purchase craft beer and Fishkill Farm’s very own Treasury Cider. Make sure to save room for pie made with Stuart’s fruit, ice cream, and fresh lemonade.  Farm owner Betsy Stuart will also serve samples of her Brown “Betsy” Apple Crisp, the best apple crisp in the area!

Visitors can venture into the orchard to pick apples between 4-5pm and pay per pound for whatever is picked. More fun-filled activities include raffle drawings, a live animal exhibit, and a hands-on interactive T-shirt painting station. The Farm bakery will remain open during the Farm Festival so don’t be shy, stop in and grab some fresh baked goods!

Don’t forget to take pictures of your family fun! Photos taken at the Farm Festival can be entered in a raffle for a chance to win one of our incredible giveaways! Simply post pictures of the event on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and use the hashtag #stuartsforever.  Entries may also be featured on our website, social media and various promotional materials.

ABOUT WESTCHESTER LAND TRUST
Since its founding in 1988, Westchester Land Trust (WLT) has preserved nearly 8,300 acres of open space including more than 700acres of preserves owned by the organization which are free and open to the public year-round. Westchester Land Trust works with public and private partners to preserve land and to enhance the natural resources in Westchester and eastern Putnam counties—a densely populated region under persistent threat from the pressures of development. Through the use of conservation easements and outright acquisition, WLT’s efforts benefit the long-term health of these communities by safeguarding air quality, food supply and community character, as well as critical watershed areas.

For more information: Contact WLT Outreach Coordinator Kat Deely at kat@westchesterlandtrust.org/ 914.234.6992 ext. 15

Photo by Amanda Wright.