It wasn’t the West End Fair, but the Fall Festival held at the West End Fairgrounds this past weekend certainly helped fill a void and bring out the community.

The gates opened on Friday afternoon at 4 p.m., and by early evening the parking area was almost full.

Even on Sunday afternoon the line of people waiting to get into the festival snaked all around the fence from the parking area.

People were required to wear masks for entrance and sign a COVID waiver. Most took off the masks as they wandered around fairgrounds.

“We had absolutely no idea we would get a turnout like this,” said Dale “Peanut” Greenzweig Jr., West End Fair president.

The idea for the festival grew out of an idea when the committee decided to do something to give the community something fun to do.

“When we took it to the fair board and got an OK, we only had four or five weeks to get it together,” Greenzweig said.

It all came together pretty quickly, Greenzweig said. It wasn’t too long before they had more than 80 vendors that included pony rides, hay rides and of course your usual fair foods, including ice cream, strawberry shortcake and beef or pork sandwiches.

The main stage featured a band all three days, and Sunday’s band was a special favorite - The Cramer Brothers.

“I really want to thank all the people who volunteered and donated their time and everyone who came out to support us. It really means a lot,” Greenzweig said.

The profits from the festival will go to the upkeep on the fairgrounds and to pay for the utilities and cost that would normally be paid out of the profits from the yearly fair.