FOUNTAINTOWN — Bins overflow in the entryway of The Fountain as the annual Fall Festival draws near.
Yet they’re not supplies for the free festival, which the church will offer from 4-7 p.m. Sept. 14 at its property, 797 W. Brookville Road. Rather, the bins are full of donations for two local organizations who will have booths at the event.
Those who go to the festival can take part in a Dan’s Fish Fry meal, ice cream, bingo, Dessert Dash, bumper ball, a Foam Happy party, yard games, bounce house/obstacle course, an air brush artist, a kindness coloring page and raffles. A 3-v-3 basketball tournament offers four Indiana Pacers tickets to the winning team.
Local non-profit Kindness Delivered is partnering with the church on this event. Its bumblebee-decked van and mascot Tenderheart have rolled into more than a dozen events this year with acts of kindness, from giving out ice cream at New Palestine Main Street’s concert series to being part of teacher appreciation events.
Deb Kraft, who founded The Shelby Foundation for Kindness Delivered Inc., is executive assistant and outreach ministry leader at The Fountain. In an email, she said last year’s festival popular and drew more than 200 people.
“It’s all free, which is really nice,” said Seth Eagleson, family pastor at The Fountain. “We see a lot of community members come to this.”
Between now and the festival, the church is gathering new toy donations for God’s Open Arms Ministry and food for Kenneth Butler Memorial Soup Kitchen. Both community partners will be represented at the festival.
“It’s been fantastic,” Eagleson said of the response, visible in the overflowing bins. “People have been really generous.”
He said the range of activities means there’s something to appeal to a wide range of ages.
“The goal is to be as involved with the community as we can be,” he said. “We just want to serve the community.”
For more details, visit yourfountain.org or kindnessdelivered.org.
