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VALLEY — A major event will be taking place next weekend at Valley Sportsplex. It’s being presented by a local nonprofit known as The Valley Local and will feature hours of live entertainment, great food from one’s choice of 33 food trucks and hours of browsing amid 97 vendors. 

It’s being called The Valley Fest, and organizers hope it’s the start of something that will be taking place at least once a year.

Should it rain on Saturday, there’s an option for it to go on Sunday. 

Admission will cost $5 and there will be a $5 fee for parking. People who’d like to attend are being asked to bring five-dollar bills and lots of ones with them to help speed up entry into this big local happening.

The Valley Local is headed up by C.J. and Sara Crutchfield, Todd Allen, Ashley Beck and Jake Key. 

Crutchfield talked about their plans for their first event at Wednesday’s noon-hour meeting of the Kiwanis Club of Valley. 

“The Valley Local is a small nonprofit organization with a big mission of bridging the gap between small business and local entrepreneurs while building a pillar our community can rely on,” she said. 

“The focus of this organization is to help bring family fun, togetherness and empowerment within the hearts of local residents while also helping spotlight the need for support and awareness around our small communities, local businesses and other nonprofit organizations in the Valley area, where it’s needed the most.”

“We will be putting the amphitheater to use for the first time in many years,” Crutchfield said. “We will also have a second stage brought in where other performances will be taking place.”

Live entertainment will begin at noon at The Valley Fest and continue throughout the day until around 10 p.m. Scheduled to perform that day will be the Sally Brown Band, Jamin Ellis. The Grey, Marcus Frazier, Elizabeth Dewberry, Kristopher Dewberry, Junior Cardial, Marde Brooks, Far Beyond Reason and a saxophone player who goes by Big Saxy. Valley High graduate Tae Madden will have everyone laughing with the family-friendly comedy show he does. He will be taking the stage around 4 p.m.

The stage that will be brought in will be used by full bands with the amphitheater being used for acoustic performances and the comedy show.

Attendees are advised to bring lawn chairs for seating in the amphitheater area.

Crutchfield explained that the 97 vendors and 33 food trucks will be set up in the parking area between Ram Stadium and the Sportsplex. Those coming to the event can park around the Community Center, the tennis courts, behind the stadium and across Fairfax Bypass at the National Guard Armory and at Small Wonders Day Care. Shuttles will be available to transport people to the entertainment area. The Community Center will be open at regular hours that day.

Several City of Valley police officers, along with a private security detail, will be there to enforce security. No guns will be allowed on the premises. Metal detectors will be in place at the entrance to make sure of this. 

“We will be enforcing the Ram Stadium rule of having wristlet-size wallets and clear bags only to be brought into The Valley Fest. It will be a no-tolerance zone event,” Crutchfield said. “People who do not follow the festival rules of being kind, respectful and responsible will be dismissed.”

No outside food will be allowed. Attendees are asked to bring cash with them. There will be a Venmo and a Cash App set up, but not all vendors will have this option. Service dogs will be allowed but no other pets will be allowed.

All proceeds from The Valley Fest will be donated to the Chattahoochee Humane Society, the Circle of Care and the City of Valley.

“Our Valley Fest would not be possible without our amazing sponsors,” Crutchfield said.

The platinum-level sponsors include J.C. Colley Trucking, State Representative Debbie Wood, Sunbelt Rentals and Mr. Ice.

Gold-level sponsors include Greg Boddie Heating & Air and The POD.

The silver sponsors are Gimme Some Sugar & Coffee, Loopyheart, Knauf, Valley Chiropractic, Dr. Chris Padgett, Chambley’s, Terri’s Mill Village Cafe, Eagle Roofing, Chris Clark Grading & Paving and Harris Gray Engineering, Surveying and Planning.

Bronze-level sponsors are S&S Lawn Care, Supershot Photography, The Oaks Farm, Small Town Lawns, Spiritually Clean, Long Beach Tanning, Sass & Class Boutique. The Corner Sha’q, Tha Curry Man, The Valley Thrift Store, Cottage Sweets Baking Company, Johnny’s Pizza, Becky A, Author and Illustrator, Harmony Funeral Home and Memorial Park, His Purpose Nutrition, Kobeck Properties, Milltown & Huguley Nutrition.

“We started planning for this in November and by December all our slots for vendors and food trucks had been filled,” Crutchfield said. “Those are minimum numbers. We do have a backup list. There’s a great deal of interest out there in putting on something like this. If Dothan, Alabama can have something as well as they do their Peanut Festival every year why can’t we do something similar in our area?”

She continued, “Valley Fest will help us bring out the talent we have here in the Valley. They don’t have a place to be heard. We will try to do that for them with Valley Fest. We are looking forward to a day of family-friendly and respectful fun. We are hoping everyone comes out and shows their support for what we are trying to do.”