LOXLEY, Ala. — The crowds were plentiful. Sweet. The rain held off. Sweet. Temperatures were mild. Sweet, again.

Kids played on antique tractors, tried the rides, ogled the crafts, and of course, everybody who could enjoyed the delicious strawberry shortcake and flats of strawberries for sale. A flat of the red berries cradled against a hip was one of the “must have” accessories for fairgoers.

Sweet. Sweet. Sweet.

The 22nd annual Strawberry Festival was held April 11 and 12 at the Loxley Municipal Park.

It will be a while before final totals are released. But, it looks like the Association for Retarded Citizens of Baldwin County and Loxley Elementary School, the two groups the festival benefits, will have to decide where to spend the profits.

In past years, LES has used “Strawberry Money” to buy computers for classrooms and library, to air condition the multi-purpose building, and to upgrade playground equipment. ARCBC has used its share to open new residential homes and to purchase vans used at the homes.

“We have had perfect conditions, we could not ask for better,” said DeAnn Ramey, principal of Loxley Elementary and a member of the festival’s steering committee.

While late morning Easter Sunday appeared to be slow, Ramey was confident that the crowds would be back “right after church.”

Food vendors, including the Loxley Volunteer Fire Department booth, seemed to be doing well. The VFD had plenty of (safely contained) fire to roast their sausages and cook other goodies for sale. Their sense of fun and good humor was free for all.

Firefighter Dave Wojciechowski watched over the sizzling sausage.

“It’s been pretty steady,” Wojciechowski said. Wojciechowski is also Loxley’s Emergency Operations Director.

It is hard to imagine a better setting for the festival. The park’s ball fields were filled with vintage vehicles, and the two-lane walking track around the park made it easy for the oldest to the youngest fairgoer to get around.

And while there was everything from outsized wooden rockers to hair bows and carved frogs that “croaked” when a stick was passed along their backs, it was the strawberries that were the hit of the festival.

Heather Thomley and her daughter Mercedi Thomley of Robertsdale were just two of the workers serving up heapin’ dishes of strawberry shortcake.

“I’m an aide at Loxley (Elementary) and this festival helps us,” said the elder Thomley.

The shortcake portions were generous. This reporter had a young family member with her, and even though that youngster is known for loving strawberry shortcake, she couldn’t finish it all. Fortunately other family members stepped in to help, and pronounced the treat “delicious.”