The Fall 2018 edition of The Reservoir Hill Report, the quarterly publication of the Reservoir Hill Community Partners, described the annual Whitelock Farm Harvest Festival as “a great time to meet new neighbors, greet old friends, and satisfy your appetite.” As a board member of one of the Community Partners [In, For, Of, Inc. (IFO)] for two years, I’ve been invited to attend before, but other obligations kept me away. Until today.
On this exceptionally warm (84°!) Fall day, I made my way across town, found a parking space a block away, and had a wonderful time doing exactly what the newsletter promised! For 2 hours, I made my way around the Festival grounds—the 900 block of Whitelock Street, where the Farm operates.
My first stop was the Greens & Kugel Cookoff, a popular event that draws contestants from Res Hill and Beth Am Synagogue (with which IFO is associated). Judges pay a small fee to taste the goods and render their favorite Greens entry and their favorite Kugel entry. Because I arrived late, I barely had time to sample the Kugels; I never made it to the Greens table! But I did submit my vote. The winning and runner-up cooks from each table received a prize.
From there, I strolled around the various tents and booths that included book vendors, children’s activities, a voter registration table, and representatives from community organizations ranging from the Reservoir Hill Improvement Council to No Boundaries Coalition, the Boy Scouts, Sarah’s House (a community mental health support center), and more.
Entertainment was also a big part of the Festival. When I arrived, the DJ was playing a good mix of tunes. Later, there was live entertainment, including Black Assets, a duo I had the pleasure of hearing exactly a year ago at Dovecote Café’s 2nd Anniversary celebration. And then, there was the Dance Off (introduced by a familiar community activist and youth leader, EJ), between two extraordinarily talented young men, who dazzled the crowd with their moves and blazing footwork, followed by some spontaneous, equally stupendous moves by two older ladies, one 78 and the other 92 years old!
Occasionally, folks looked up at the periodic Naval jet flyovers that were part of another Baltimore event this weekend, Fleet Week, at the Inner Harbor.
The afternoon wrapped up with the obligatory but fun community line dance! I joined in, dancing like no one was watching, on the Electric Slide and the Cha-Cha Slide! Then, with a bounce in my step, I slid on down the street back to my car and drove home, happy that I took the time to have some fun.
For more information on the Whitelock Farm, visit http://whitelockfarm.org/about.
baltimoreblackwoman 
Jackie, Thanks for posting. It really was too bad there wasn’t a better showing. I thought this year’s festival was the best one—was well organized, had lots of food and drink offerings, and the DJ and music was of really good quality.
B. >
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I Once Grew Up In This Neighborhood Attending Almost Every Movie Theater Within Reach, And Remember Going To Druid Hill Park Zoo (before being renamed The Maryland Zoo) After Attending Sunday School Near The Mansion House Location, Where Minnie The Elephant Was Brought Out And Put Through Her Paces Of Dancing, Etc.
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