Massive crowds end up for Italian meals and enjoyable at 51st annual St. Rocco’s Fest

By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 6 September 2026 at 9:16 pm

Photos by Tom Rivers

HULBERTON – Lori Richardson, left, and Noreen Ford have hen parmesan prepared at at present’s St. Rocco’s Italian Festival in Hulberton.

There had been huge crowds for the occasion, with individuals displaying up an hour early for the Italian meals.

Ford co-chairs the meals pavilion along with her brother Bill Bower and his spouse Rose Mary.

Ford graduated from the St. Mary’s School in Holley and has been at each one of many 51 festivals.

“We see a lot of people who we went to school with and their families,” Ford stated.

The occasion is a fundraiser for the ONE Catholic Family of Churches.

Gail Christ works with different volunteers to get powered dough waffles.

The pageant grounds had been full of individuals.

There had been about 25 distributors promoting arts, crafts and greens.

Chuck Maxon and Rachael Spychalski serve up spaghetti dinners.

Some of the spaghetti crew embrace from left Gary Maxon, Chuck Maxon, Rachael Spychalski and Jean Maxon.

Volunteers began getting ready the meals for St. Rocco’s on Tuesday.

They cooked 40 kilos of spaghetti, 45 gallons of meat sauce and 1,350 meatballs.

The volunteers additionally ready 224 pans of eggplant with six servings a pan. The eggplant was donated by Vendetti Farms and Piedimonte Farms.

Jean Maxon is the general pageant chairwoman. She stated the group promoted the pageant extra within the area. She was impressed by the massive crowds.

There had been 12 groups competing within the bocce event.

Enzio Molinaro, 1 ½ of Lockport, holds one of many bocce balls on an idle courtroom. He was on the pageant to observe his uncle and grandfather play.

Katie Robinson, a pianist and vocalist, carried out hits from the Seventies and Eighties together with Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Carole King, Seals and Crofts, Cyndi Lauper and James Taylor. Here she is singing, “True Colors” by Cyndi Lauper.