SANFORD — Whether you’re in the market for a jar of homemade bread-and- butter  pickles, a silk flower arrangement in autumn or Christmas themes, a raffle ticket that could put some cash in your pocket or that intricate piece of costume jewelry, it is likely available at the St. Therese of Lisieux Parish Fair in Sanford.

The fair weekend starts off with a turkey dinner — with all the fixings – at 4:30 p.m. on Friday on the lower level of St. Ignatius Gym, also called the parish hall, at 25 Riverside Ave.

At 5 p.m., the fair opens on the main level.

Organizers have been working for months to get ready for the annual event, which is a major fundraiser for the parish.

Bargain hunters will be able to find an item or two at the ‘gently used’ table, sporting an array of household items.

And there is more, so much more, including a full Santa and sleigh Christmas set, complete with reindeer.

Frank and Jean Pease are chairing the event. They’ve been involved with the fair for the past 25 years and spend untold hours in the kitchen in the lower level of the gym, making hot pepper jelly, sour pickles, bread and butter pickles and Pottsfield relish. The couple has made about 150 jars for eager buyers, and their son John has fashioned about 500 potholders — one will go with each jar sold, or people can buy the potholders separately.

Jean said she and Frank purchase the peppers for the relish, but parishioners are generous with their garden vegetables, and donate tomatoes, cucumbers and more to help the cause. The couple starts making the pickles and jelly in August. Then, on the weekend, it will all be sold.

All of the money earned at the fair goes to parish capital improvements and the heating fund.

“This is a tradition,” said Jean. “My mother and father-in-law always worked at this table and now our daughter Anne and granddaughter Lily will carry on the tradition.”

The fair, which winds down Friday at 8 p.m., reopens Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and again on Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., is also a tradition with Carol Moylan, the woman responsible for the vast array of silk flower arrangements.

“It’s a hobby,” said Moylan as she set up the table with the colorful arrangements on Wednesday. Moylan said she doesn’t do craft fairs, just the parish fair. She starts working in June to have enough arrangements for the buyers, picking up materials when there’s a sale.

The work, and the proceeds, are her contribution to the parish, Moylan said.

Frank and Jean Pease feel the same.

“We love our parish,” said Jean.

There is a full table of costume jewelry, lots of knitted caps and mittens and lap robes, a baked goods table, Christmas-themed items and more. And, organizers say, there is a supervised area for children’s games and face painting, so parents can peruse the goodies while the youngsters have fun.

New this year is a cookie walk, where people choose from an array of cookies and then weigh and pay for them once those final, difficult yummy choices are made.

And of course, there are the raffle tickets, which yields a cash prize for the winners.

Daniel Rooney, who is among the organizers, said parishioners have been working on the fair for months.

The word gets spread far and wide – and everyone is welcome.

He said while some make a beeline for the ‘gently used’ table and then head out the doors, most stay awhile.

“It’s nice when you see people come in. They eat, sit. talk, relax and enjoy the atmosphere,” said Rooney.

Cost for the Friday night turkey dinner is $12 for adults, $6 for children under 12. Saturday’s food choices will range from sandwiches to pork pie.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 780-9016 or twells@journaltribune.com.

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