LEWISBURG, W.Va. – The smell of chocolate wafted throughout downtown once more as the 17th annual Lewisburg Chocolate Festival got underway.
The event hosted more than 30 businesses, all offering sweet treats and some chocolate-making demonstrations to residents and tourists alike.
“I think it’s so special for the community. We’ve seen people who’ve been here all 17 years, and they’ve made a tradition out of it, and the shops look forward to it every year and we see the same folks come to town and we like to see familiar faces again and we get to see a lot of new faces. People come from, oh my goodness, they come from a lot of states around just to come to this festival,” said Sheena Pendley, the coordinator of the festival.
For the vendors, it’s an opportunity to showcase their business and meet new faces, especially if food service is not their day-to-day gig.
Mary McCloud is part of CAMC Greenbrier Valley Medical Center’s booth, who were offering a healthy chocolate bark. McCloud took delight in both sides of the equation of selling chocolate and tasting it.
“After we’re sold out and I can go and taste. I just enjoy talking to the people. It’s nice. I see a lot of people that I know in the community that sometimes I don’t see elsewhere, and I just enjoy meeting new people and getting to see everybody have a good time,” said McCloud.
Although the weather made for a gloomy day, there is one common thread which brought out the crowd.
“Everybody loves chocolate,” added McCloud.
The Lewisburg Chocolate Festival has already announced next year’s date, which will be April 11th, 2026. For more information on the event you can check them out by going to their website.
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