Knights put on an exhibition of jousting at a previous edition of the Lakewood Lions Club’s Renaissance Fair at Pine Park, Lakewood. The fair will return on Sept. 21-22. FILE PHOTO I n a little over a month, Pine Park, 500 Country Club Drive, Lakewood, will be teeming with many anachronistic characters when the Lakewood Lions Club’s 32nd annual Charity Renaissance Fair gets into full swing on Sept. 21-22.
The fair will feature knights in shining armor, period-appropriate entertainment and nearly 100 vendors. People of all ages are welcome to attend.
“It’s [an event] where you can spend a day with the family and not spend a fortune,” Lions Club member Don Alemany said.
Alemany said the Renaissance Fair was voted the Best Outdoor Event in 2012 by online magazine Ocean Happening. He said the main attraction will be a jousting performance by the Knights of Valour, a Canadian group that is headed by the History Channel’s “Full Metal Jousting” host Shane Adams.
“People like to see the chivalry of the time, and it definitely has its draw,” Alemany said, adding that the event is organized by a handful of people in the Lions Club. “We are not professionals. Other than the jousting team and some of the performers, everyone there is an amateur.”
Last year about 5,000 people entered the fairgrounds, generating almost $14,000 for the Lions Club after expenses. Those funds, according to Alemany, go to the club’s charitable endeavors.
“Our charter and bylaws do not allow us to keep any money from year to year, so whatever we generate from fundraisers, we have to spend that money as much as possible,” he said. Proceeds help to fund eye and hearing examinations for individuals who may not be able to afford those services; to the Deborah Heart and Lung Center in Pemberton; and to Harbor House.
This year the Lions Club was also able to provide three scholarships to Lakewood High School seniors.
Over the years, the fair has done so well that Alemany said the club only needs this one event to cover the entirety of its activities.
“This is the only fundraiser we use each year, and it generates enough revenue to support our charitable endeavors throughout the year,” he said.
This year, in an effort to increase attendance, the club will be holding special events and promotions. On Sept. 20 the fair will open for students from the Lehmann School in Lakewood.
The school, which provides education and physical assistance for children who have cerebral palsy, has been one of the club’s primary charitable initiatives for years.
“We do this special for the children. … The jousters put on a special performance … and then the knights get to interact with the students,” Alemany said.
The Lehmann students are also invited to attend the fair for free on Saturday or Sunday.
Sept. 21 will be Grandparents Day at the Renaissance Fair. Any grandparent who attends the fair with a grandchild will have his or her admission reduced by $5.
The Renaissance Fair at Pine Park will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sept. 21 and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sept. 22. Admission is $10 for adults, $1 for children ages 6 to 12, and free for children under 6.