Tait Farm Brings in Summer with Solstice Celebration

Once each year, the Earth tilts just past 23 degrees on its axis, allowing for the longest day of the year and some extra sunlight.

Many places in the world celebrate the annual summer solstice with fertility festivals and other rituals, but in State College, they listen to country music and taste wine.

Tait Farm held its annual summer solstice celebration on Saturday afternoon, lining its lot with vendors offering samples of their locally grown foods and locally brewed beers and wines.

It’s always fun to spend a day sampling wine, soaking in the extra sunlight, and enjoying some music, but the celebration was about more than that.

“I’m a huge supporter of the Friends and Farmers Cooperative, who are sponsoring the event today,” says Dan McKenrick. “I’m just a big supporter of local farms and I wanted to come out and see what our community has to offer and participate in it.”

In a rural area like Central Pennsylvania, there are plenty of opportunities to see what local farms produce and try their products. Saturday’s celebration was one of the those opportunities at Tate Farm, with produce, dairy, plants, and more on display.

“I think it’s a very important thing to support local farms for the benefit of the community,” McKenrick says. “It’s just a way to make connections with your neighbors and make a stronger and tighter-knit community.”

One of the vendors in attendance was the Happy Valley Vineyard and Winery, which grows its own grapes and ferments them into an array of wines. Tyler Walter, a carpenter and friend of the winery who built the winery’s bar, was manning the vineyard’s table on Saturday afternoon.

“The local one-on-one outreach, face-to-face with people, is really necessary for businesses in town,” he says.

Walter adds that the event has a leg up on some of the other vendor shows in town, offering enough entertainment for an afternoon of fun instead of a quick shop.

“I think it’s wonderful that you can make a lunch out of it,” he says. “The turnout is very good and the music is really enjoyable. With the food and everything you can picnic and have some drink samples and play games and activities. It’s something you can really stick around for and not just breeze on through.”

Among the many attendees at the solstice celebration, McKenrick was one of those who made a day out of the event.

“It’s awesome,” he says. “I’ve had a blast. I’m really impressed and it’s a lot of fun.”

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