Westmoreland Arts and Heritage Festival celebrates 50th anniversary this year

HEMPFIELD TOWNSHIP, Pa. (KDKA) — What started as a few booths back in 1974 at what was then Seton Hill College has now grown into hundreds of vendors spread out across Twin Lakes Park.

If you are interested in enjoying handmade crafts, tasting delicious foods or listening to upbeat music from some great musicians, head to the Westmoreland Arts and Heritage Festival.

Diane Shrader is the executive director of this event. She says that a festival this large doesn't happen without the continued support from the public and the festival's many merchants.

"We have many of our vendors that have been here close to the beginning, and they come back year after year," said Shrader. "And this year we have 127 new vendors."

One of those new vendors this year is artist Len Kaminski, who has been wood sculpting since he was a kid.

"It started with Boy Scouts," said Kaminski. "Whittling it led me to carving, which led me to sculpture. I have been doing carving for 20 years. I mostly carve American Indians and when I sit down, I am releasing the Native American from this piece of western Montana cottonwood tree bark."

The Arts and Heritage Festival expects about 80,000 people this year to take part in all the fun and festivities.

Parking is limited at Twin Lakes, so there is a $4 roundtrip shuttle bus service that runs to and from places like Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, Pitt-Greensburg and the Walmart store in Greensburg.

But no matter how you get to the festival this year, folks like Blair Bernard say just get here because you are bound to have a good time.

"It is always fun walking around and meeting all the awesome vendors," said Bernard. "This show is all handmade and it is great to see what people can do. It's amazing."

Now, if you couldn't make it out to the festival on Friday, don't worry, they are also going to be open both on Saturday and Sunday.