LUDLOW – On Oct. 8, Iron Duke Brewing Company will host its annual Harvest Festival at the 12-20 acre Ludlow Elks Lodge. The event will go on rain or shine.
Each year, the brewery hosts an event with live music, food trucks, yard games and more. The Harvest Festival is also kid-friendly with plenty of activities, including bounce houses set up just for them. One of the main reasons for the event is to raise money and awareness for juvenile diabetes.
Owner Nick Morin and his wife faced a challenge together early on in parenthood when their then 2-year-old son was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. He is now 11 and managing it. She said the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) was a huge help to her family during the process and she wanted to be able to give back and help others.
In 2015, Morin wanted to host an event that would raise awareness and money for JDRF. He said: “We wanted to put on an exciting fundraising event every year not only to raise money but also to raise awareness of diabetes. We thought autumn is a fun time also because it’s the start of the autumn beer season and people have this mentality of October”. The brewery has a special release of draft and draft beers during the Harvest Festival.
This will be the seventh year that the Harvest Festival will take place after it was not held in 2020 due to COVID-19. Morin said she loves hosting this event each year because of the amount of fun it brings to the community. “I look forward to this event every year because there is a celebration mentality. There are lots of fun things to do and it brings the community together. Some people don’t even know they are helping to raise money for charity,” he said.
Proceeds from the event are donated to JDRF, and Morin said he appreciates the community’s support. “We have met many people and made friends who had similar experiences to ours. No matter how much a donation means, we love giving people the tools to raise awareness and even donate on their own,” said Morin.
Tickets for the event are $5 in advance and can be purchased online or at the brewery and $10 at the door on the day of the event. “It’s a great time to spend time with your family, friends and people in the community and I hope to see a lot of people come out to enjoy the event this year,” Morin said.
