Another asparagus season is behind us, and it’s already been a month since the 2025 festival (June 12-15)! The Oceana Echo is pleased to provide this quick recap for the community.
“It was a great success,” reported NAF Chairperson Michele Amstutz. “We were pleased to see the excitement around the new Friday Night Kickoff Concert. Both the Spear It 5K and Taste of Asparagus were successful and saw an increase in participation. I was also happy to hear positive feedback regarding the change in the parade route. Logistically it was easier for our staff, and as a participant, there were fewer large gaps between entries, which we haven't seen in many years. We can't thank our volunteers, sponsors and those who attended enough for making this year fantastic!"
The world premiere film screening of the documentary “Did You Guys Eat?/¿Yo comierion?” saw nearly 100 people in attendance, Thursday, June 12. The expertly-done documentary produced and directed by Alma Professor Stephany Slaughter presented a wide spectrum of firsthand accounts, from small family farms to migrant workers, sharing the activities and lives behind what it takes to bring food to our tables. A panel discussion, which included nearly a dozen different stakeholders, answered questions and shared personal perspectives and stories.
Friday night’s kickoff party at the Oceana County Fairgrounds was very well attended for the first year. Organizers estimated about 300 people were in attendance. “We had people of all ages there to listen to the band and several up dancing to their favorites. The crowd loved the band, and we had several Facebook comments to please bring them back next year,” Lindsay Brown, event organizer, said. “Food was sold/served by the Oceana County Firefighters Training Group and all proceeds from that went to them, so that was a nice way to give back to the community.”
This year’s Spear-It 5K saw 22 more runners than last year! Winners included the following: Top male finisher - Overall, Bobby Jazwinski of Shelby (15:30.1); Top female finisher - Overall, Hannah Slattery of Hart (20:22.7); Top male finisher - Master, Matthew Gutteridge of Fenton (20:46.4); Top female finisher - Master, Tressa Wenk of Montague (24:12.3); Male 75-59, Dean Denman of Shelby (28:28.2); Male 9 and under, S. Gage of Hart (26:54.7); Female 75-59, Kathy Calabretta of Ludington (28:10.5); and Female 9 and under, C. Curtis, Rochester, Minn. (27:15.1). All race results are available at nationalasparagusfestival.org/5k.
The Taste of Asparagus Food Show welcomed between 300-400 people to taste asparagus made in a variety of ways. The increased attendance was likely due to the fact that the car show was going on at the same time at the same venue. Winners included First Place - Emmi’s Mediterranean Asparagus Salad, First Runner-Up - Claudia’s Spicy Refrigerator Pickled Asparagus, Second Runner-Up - Asparagus Queen Shelby Purdy’s Asparagus Jelly, Queen’s Choice - Aiden’s Creamy Asparagus Soup and People’s Choice - Suri Sierra’s Chicken Asparagus “Gumbo.”
This year’s Farm Tours also included a visit to the Asparagus Research Farm located on Oceana Drive adjacent to the West Michigan Research Station. “We had about 40 people turn out to both stops on the tour, the research farm and Riley Farms. It was a really engaging group with a lot of questions about asparagus. It was a lot of fun to be able to talk with them and answer their questions. Something I found interesting (was) the majority of the group were not from the area, with some folks driving as far away as five hours. So the festival certainly has a wide reach,” shared Justin Adams, West Michigan Research Station farm manager and NAF farm tour guide.
The weekend ended with the Oceana County Airport Association selling 760 tickets for their annual all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast! Skies were clear, and many were able to enjoy various aircraft on display, catching up with friends, neighbors and welcoming visitors.
Asparagus Queen Shelby Purdy and Runner-up Haley Walsworth made appearances at every festival event they could. From their coronation on Friday to Sunday’s pancake breakfast, they kicked off their busy year ahead meeting and greeting the thousands of visitors in town that weekend!
