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Editor's note: The following story was submitted by contributing writer Dale Smith:
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Photos by Dale Smith
In far left photo, Allen Chapel AME Church Pastor, Lorenzo Laws, right, chats with Ronnie Rogers, a freelance musician who provided his talents at the church's weekend fall festival. "He's the best bass player at Allen AME," Laws said of his church member. In the nearer photo, the moon bounce was a popular spot for children to burn off energy during the festival.
NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- The smell of barbecue foods hung in the air in the 500 block of Mary Avenue this weekend as the Allen Chapel AME Church hosted its three-day outdoor fall festival fundraiser.
Photo by Dale Smith
Artis Register is a member of the Pepper Pot Steel Drum and Orchestra who performed Saturday at the Allen Chapel AME Church fall festival. The band is from Daytona Beach.
The melodious sounds of a steel band playing nearby added to the festive atmosphere. The 13-member band, known as the Pepper Pot Steel Band and Orchestra, hails from Daytona Beach and travels around the area providing entertainment.
Event coordinator and church elder Tim Hankerson said the festival will help pay for the church's ministries programs that serve the homeless, provide food for organizations, such as the Boys and Girls Scouts, help with the Christmas food drive and back-to-school supplies, as well as its youth empowerment program.
"This event used to be just one day," Hankerson said. "But we decided to expand it over a three-day weekend. By the looks of things, it's been a big success."
Pastor Lorenzo Laws, now in his first year as the church's leader, was all smiles, too, as he took in the crowd, shaking hands with neighbors and friends. The native Volusia County man came to the Allen Chapel from the Mt. Zion AME Church in Hastings a year ago.
"Hastings is known as the potato capital of Florida," Laws said with a smile.
The fundraiser was more than just providing money and goods for the church's programs, Laws said. Programs like the one the church sponsored was all about the people and spreading the gospel.
"We restore the faith in people," he said. "People need to feel that others do care about them. They need to know faith is more than a Sunday morning worship service. That's what we do -- restore faith."
As the music switched from steel drums to the soul sounds of gospel, the event continued to draw in the crowds on Sunday with children hopping up and down in the moon bounce and tumbling down the air-filled slide. And the aromatic whiffs of chicken and ribs brought church members and guests alike to the long tables of the Sons of Allen BBQ site where hefty portions were dished out in a seemingly empty bottom of chafing dishes.
About the contributing writer:
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Dale Smith is a resident of New Smyrna Beach, who has reported on local news in Volusia County since October 2009. His writing background includes a mix of journalism and public relations in several community newspapers and a p.r. firm in northern Virginia. He attended Barton Academy in Barton, Vt., and the Cambridge (Mass.) School of Broadcasting for radio & TV broadcasting.