LEON — Leon in Decatur County is gearing up for the largest craft and vendor show in the region — the 31st annual Southern Iowa Crafts and More festival.
More than 100 spaces will be in use by vendors at the Central Decatur North School complex at 1201 Northeast Poplar St. More vendors than ever before will be at this location with the entire building to be filled with items for the customer to look at and purchase. Several Leon and Decatur County organizations will also be setting up information spaces at the school.
Twenty more vendors will be setting up downtown in the 300 block of North Main Street, both inside and outside. The public should note the location change this year. Organizers and vendors are excited about this new location because it is larger and more customer-friendly than the former venue.
Downtown: Decatur County Hospital Auxiliary group members will be assisting customers and vendors, as well as having items from their gift shop. Outside on the sidewalk, the customer can purchase Amish-made baskets. Across the street, customers will find kettle corn all day — and Santa and his live reindeer from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Decatur County Rotary Club members will be offering a meal at this site.
Approximately 150 vendors will be selling everything from handmade items, hand-carved wood items, handmade pottery, health and beauty products, clothing to musical instruments and more. All items sold at this show are either handmade or can be purchased new form the company the vendor represents. This is not a garage sale, nor a flea market.
What’s new this year? Free shuttle buses will pick customers up at the corner of Third and Main streets in downtown Leon or at the Decatur County Fairgrounds at the north edge of town along Highway 69. People can park and ride right to the front door of the school or downtown. Then, they can ride back to a spot near when they parked.\
Central Decatur School District is mid-stream in building a new outdoor sports complex. Parking spots at the school will be difficult to obtain. Arrangements can be made with school parking lot officials for delivering handicapped people to the door (driver to park elsewhere) and for picking up items too large to handle on the bus rides. The shuttle buses will start to pick up riders in both locations at 8:45 a.m. The last bus will leave the school at 3 p.m.
Live music will be featured in the high school commons all day, along with meals and snacks from St. Brendan’s Catholic Church.
Many Leon merchants are offering specials that day. Check their advertising for bargains.