By Katherine Gittman
CP Reporter
This past Saturday, May 20, the town of Ladysmith hosted the 9th annual “Ladysmith Day” at the Caroline County Fairgrounds. Like every year, the event was a free event that invited many people in the community to come together for a day filled with food venues, music, local businesses and other fun activities. Looking out at the fields of the Caroline County Fairgrounds, the event also brought beautiful weather in consisting of temperatures in the mid-70s, sunshine and a cool breeze.
Ladysmith Day first started in 2009, which took place in Ladysmith Village until May 2015. In 2016, the event’s location switched to the Caroline County Fairgrounds and provided a more spacious location for the activities. Two of the main purposes of Ladysmith Day is “designed to promote a better sense of community within the Ladysmith area, as well as direct attention towards our local businesses and civic organizations” according to the Ladysmith Day Facebook Page.
With its carnival-like atmosphere, Ladysmith brought many activities between face painting, a moon bounce, kettle corn, pony rides and ice cones. This year’s Ladysmith Day all brought two bands, Patsy and the Country Classics and The Real Deal Band and Show to provide live entertainment for the guests.
Mentioned previously, one of the main purposes of the event is to bring business to the town of Ladysmith. Throughout the event, different businesses, whether it is a food, clothing, or animal business, had stations set up for the guests to come around and visit. One venue included Milford Meadows Farm Horses and Pony Rides located in Milford near the high school and middle school. The organization provides pony rides at many events across the county as well as parties.
There were also many pet-related businesses at Ladysmith Day this year. One of the local businesses that was there was FurGet Me Knots, which is a pet grooming service founded in 2009 located in Ladysmith. Voted “Best of the Best” in the Caroline Progress’s 2017 Readership Voting awards, FurGet Me Knots strives to provide outstanding pet grooming services for pet owners with reasonable prices.
Another organization at the event was Paws For Purple Hearts located in Ruther Glen. Starting in 2015, Paws For Purple Hearts is a nonprofit organization that teaches veterans who have dealt with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) how to train services dogs. The service dogs that they train will help other veterans who have faced injuries during combat. Along with PTSD, the service dogs also treat veterans who have difficulty with mobility and traumatic brain injury.
One of the many aspects of Ladysmith Day many of the attendees enjoyed the weather and the cool breeze. Guests, Marcia Sale enjoyed the weather and visiting all of the businesses. She shares, “it’s nice to see the different vendors located in the area and it’s really good for the kids. It’s a really good place for families to come with their children.”
Starting out as a way to bring the community together and support local businesses, Ladysmith Day has become an annual tradition in Caroline County. For the past nine years, the event has been able to bring fun-filled activities and entertainment to people in the area and has helped the community grow.
Loading ...