“The city of North Royalton is one big family. You see grandparents, parents, children and even teenagers walking around having a good time.” Those are the feelings of North Royalton resident Joyce Harrison. And if you judge by the crowds that attended the 16th annual Harvest Fest on the City Green on Sunday, Sept. 23, you’d agree with that statement.
The North Royalton Firefighters always have a booth that sells chili. The firefighters sold out 30 pounds of chili in less than three hours. Paramedic Erik Funfgeld said, “We cooked up 30 pounds of ground beef and all the fixings. And it was gone quickly. We do this as a public service to the community. This was more of a meaty chili than last year.”
Stack Farm, on Cady Road, provides the pumpkins that are purchased and painted by children. Amanda Stack said they brought 136 large pumpkins to the Harvest Fest. With two hours to go, they were down to eight. “It’s so much fun to be here,” said Amanda. “Watching the kids paint their pumpkins is so cute and so adorable.”
There were many North Royalton Service Clubs on hand to show off their cooking skills and to thank the community for their support.
“We come every year and we’ve always had fun. It’s a way to meet the community and make new friends,” said Geneva Prince, North Royalton Rotary Club President, who had her three grandsons helping in the booth.
“It’s a way to meet the community and to bring our members together. Plus, it allows us to show off our baking skills,” said Dejana Cinquepalmi, Treasurer of the North Royalton Garden Club.
The North Royalton Lions Club also had a booth, selling hot pretzels and water. Andy Kolbus said the Lions come to Harvest Fest “because it’s good PR for the community. The Lions are involved in all types of causes, for those who have sight or hearing problems to providing scholarships to North Royalton High School students.”
There was one change at the Harvest Fest this year. No fried bologna sandwiches. That booth is traditionally manned by Mayor Bob Stefanik and Council President Larry Antoskiewicz. But, with the Mayor out of town on Harvest Fest Day, Antoskiewicz decided to cook up hot dogs instead.
“Serving fried bologna sandwiches is a labor-intensive task,” laughed Antoskiewicz. “There’s the bologna, the cheese, the onions. Half of my crew is missing. But, we’ll be back next year with fried bologna. We want our customers to crave the taste for another year.”
The “Do-Do Drop” area brought the curious and those hoping to win, to a 40-foot-by-60-foot, fenced-in area hoping that “Janie did her business” on their square to win a cash prize.
Another popular booth was the 4-H Homesteaders, who brought a number of animals for children to see and pet. Among the pets was a pair of two-year old goats. “Actually, goats make good pets. They are just like dogs in many ways,” said Bruce Kucharski, who owns the goats.
Area State Representative Tom Patton rounded out the Harvest festivities by presenting North Royalton Council President Larry Antoskiewicz with a Statehouse Proclamation honoring the city on its bicentennial.
“I’ve watched the city of North Royalton do great things under great leadership. Today is a marvelous example of how a community comes together to celebrate the historical value of being 200 years old,” said Representative Patton.
Proceeds from the Harvest Fest are used by the North Royalton Holiday Lighting Committee to decorate the City Green, the municipal buildings in the city such as the Fire Department buildings, the Police Department and the Parking Lot at City Hall.

By JOE JASTRZEMSKI
Contributing Writer