Thousands celebrate Labor Day weekend at annual festival in Northmoreland Park
Jackson Clark laughed with delight as a tan-colored goat chased him through a petting zoo in Northmoreland Park, trying to get the bottle in his hand.
He was one of thousands of people who flocked to Northmoreland Park for the annual Labor United Celebration, a two-day festival that featured everything from carnival rides and an ice cream truck to a sprawling flea market and a petting zoo featuring goats, donkeys and puppies.
“I liked the goats,” Jackson said. “They were just chasing me. They were fun though.”
Jackson’s father, Spenser Clark, said he hadn’t been to the annual festival in about a decade. But when friends invited them this year, they decided to spend the day taking in the celebration.
The two-day event at the Allegheny Township park boasted over 110 flea market vendors, more than 65 arts and crafts booths, 17 food stands and 14 booths promoting various businesses, said Chris Panichella, Westmoreland County’s parks coordinator.
He anticipated about 20,000 to 40,000 attendees would flock to the bustling park — where the smell of funnel cakes wafted through the air and the sound of local bands carried across the fair — Sunday and Monday.
“We are definitely on schedule to have one of our busiest days,” Panichella said, adding that some people may have had to wait about an hour in a slow-moving procession of vehicles winding their way through the park to find parking.
The annual labor festival started in the 1980s, Panichella said. The whole community has to rally together to host it each year, he said, pointing out high school-age volunteers directing parking, union workers serving beer and a local softball team running the bingo booth.
The festival is held a series of soccer fields in the park that provide an ideal open space for such an event, he said.
When they start tearing it all down Tuesday, they’ll begin planning for the next year. As soon as one event wraps up, Panichella said, organizers start thinking about what they could do to improve next year.
Panichella said part of the appeal for the event is that it’s an affordable, family-friendly celebration.
Daylong ride passes are $5 per person. Admission and parking are free.
“We offer all kinds of stuff for the kids to do,” he said. “We get a lot of people because of that price point. For a family of four to come out for $20 and ride all day is incredible. That’s our goal — our goal is to keep it at a low price point and support the community.”
“We have 363 days to get ready for the next one,” he quipped.
For some, attending the fair is an annual tradition.
Becca and Nick Berry, of Apollo, bring their kids every year. The pair watched as Cameron, 8, lobbed baseballs at a wall of bottles, trying to knock them down in a carnival-style game.
“We come every year,” Becca Berry said. They’ve brought Cameron the last eight years.
John Davis, of Leechburg, recalled coming to the festival even as a child. Now, he brings his wife, Melissa Davis, each year.
“It’s just a tradition,” he said. “I think it’s getting bigger.”
Vendors hawked an array of products, ranging from travel mugs and woodworking to stuffed animals and sunglasses.
Tom Deals, of Youngstown, Ohio, sold jewelry and knives at his booth. But some people were more interested in Luna, his feline companion, who donned a pink harness and cat-sized sunglasses.
“Everybody loves Luna,” Deals said. “They come looking for her.”
The 3-year-old cat has tagged along with Deals for various fairs and markets for the last few years. A portion of his booth was dedicated to cat collars, harnesses, mouse-shaped toys and sunglasses like the pair Luna donned. Any money the pair made from those sales would be donated to local shelters, after some of it is used to buy Luna treats.
“As soon as she started coming with me, she loved it,” Deals said of Luna. “She loves car rides, she loves coming and seeing her friends.”
Deals said he loves coming to the event every year, too. This year marked his 12th year there.
“I love this place,” he said. “This is a good market place.”
At a nearby booth, Cindy Weltner, 71, of Natrona Heights was crafting beaded bracelets at the One of a Kind Handmade Jewelry booth.
A retired middle school secretary, Weltner started making jewelry about 25 years ago as a screen-free hobby after spending her days in front of a computer.
She doesn’t like selling her handmade jewelry online, preferring fairs and markets that allow her to interact with people in person.
“I like to see people’s faces,” she said, as she put beads on a child-sized bracelet.
She likes to give kids the bracelets as their parents peruse her wares, because “you can’t start your bling too early.”
At the Simply Unique Face Painting stand, Miranda Snyder, of Zelienople, painted Hello Kitty on Riley Zetler’s face.
Riley, 9, of Saltsburg, beamed into a handheld mirror before showing off the design to her mother.
Snyder started her business in 2019 and travels to a variety of festivals like the Sunday’s Labor Day celebration, she said as she started designing a henna on Charlie Vogel’s hand.
Charlie, 12, of Monroeville, said she’s come to the festival for the last couple of years.
She watched Snyder draw patterns on her fingers.
“I see them a lot online, and I just thought they were really cute,” Charlie said.
While Charlie was excited about the henna, her favorite part of the festival, she said, was the food — french fries, in particular.
For Paul Rozzi, 70, of North Huntington, the celebration is about more than food, games and rides.
It’s also an opportunity to reflect on the meaning of the Labor Day holiday.
Rozzi, who serves as president of the Pennsylvania State Association of Letter Carriers and on the board of the Westmoreland County Labor Council, said the holiday is meant to recognize the efforts of the labor movement. He credited labor unions for helping to establish a 40-hour workweek, health care benefits and better wages.
“Labor has to stick together,” he said.
Michael Hartung, president of the Westmoreland County Labor Council, said the holiday marks the end of the summer season and a moment of reflection.
“It’s a great time when people reflect on the hard work and dedication our parents and grandparents have given,” said Hartung, 74, of Greensburg.
Julia Burdelski is a TribLive reporter covering Pittsburgh City Hall and other news in and around Pittsburgh. A La Roche University graduate, she joined the Trib in 2020. She can be reached at jburdelski@triblive.com.
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