What To Do: It’s Summer and the strawberries are ripe

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times

Summer has arrived – unofficially last weekend and officially three weeks from now. The weather is warm, school is almost done for the year and municipal and private pools are open.

Another sure sign is the arrival of the annual Brandywine Health Foundation’s Strawberry Festival.

This weekend, the 47th Annual Strawberry Festival will take place on the grounds of the Brandywine Hospital (201 Reeceville Road, Coatesville, 610-380-9080, www.brandywinestrawberryfestival.com).

The free event, which is running now through June 2, features a variety of food vendors, a run and a family fun walk, amusement rides, live entertainment, an arts-and-crafts show, children’s games and, of course, strawberry shortcake.

The list of attractions also includes “Strawberryland,” an international food fair, a “Craft, Artist and Business Vendor Fair,” a used book sale, the “Strawberriest Kid Contest” and raffle drawings.

“Strawberryland” features a wide array of activities for young kids, including a Moon Bounce, an inflatable obstacle course, inflatable slides, carnival games and the “Strawberry Train.” This area is recommended for kids 7 and younger and features an all-inclusive price of $10 a day.

Other popular attractions at the festival include Monster Truck rides, pony rides, zip line rides, laser tag, a free throw shootout, balloon sculptures by Green Bean the Clown, mechanical bull rides and performances by Jonathan the Juggler, magician Chris Capehart,” and “Hoopster, the 8-foot-tall Stilt-walking Ref.”

The festival also features a spectacular fireworks display on May 31 at 9:45 p.m.

This weekend, it’s also time for the annual Strawberry Festival at Linvilla Orchards (137 West Knowlton Road, Media, 610-876-7116,www.linvilla.com). The free festival will be held Saturday June 1 from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. on Linvilla’s grounds in Media.

The festive event will feature children’s entertainment, hayrides, pony rides, face painting, costumed characters, children’s games and contests, live music, ice cream sundaes, giant strawberry shortcake and strawberry treats.

Other special attractions will be demonstrations of how to make strawberry jam, a hula hoop contest, a photo booth, the Delaware Valley’s largest Strawberry Shortcake, special appearances by Patrol Dog, Mr. Mouse, and Little Yellow One-Eyed Dude. There will also be live music by Adam Monaco.

Lolly & YoYo will take the stage with two high energy adventure-based shows that will be sure to have you and your little ones dancing and singing along.  Sustainable Ritchie from Bear Creek Organics will work along with the children to make their own flowerpot and take home their very own strawberry plant!  

The Brandywine Valley has quite a few museums and tourist sites that provide residents and tourists ideal opportunities to spend leisure time — and you can maximize your effort if you take advantage of the 2019 Brandywine Treasure Trail Passport.

The cost is $45 for an individual pass and $95 for a family pass (for up to five family members).

The Brandywine Treasure Trail Passport is good for one-time admission to Wilmington and the Brandywine Valley’s top attractions now through September 3.

A family pass, which includes one-day admission to each of 12 sites, can bring a savings of over $200 for the holders — especially since many of the participating institutions have regular admission fees in double figures.

The list of locations covered by the Brandywine Treasure Trail Passport includes Longwood Gardens, Delaware Museum of Natural History, Brandywine River Museum, Delaware Art Museum, Delaware History Museum, Hagley Museum and Library, Delaware Center for Contemporary Arts, Nemours Mansion & Gardens, Read House and Garden, Mt. Cuba Center, Rockwood Museum and Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library.

For more information, call (800) 489-6664 or visit www.visitwilmingtonde.com/bmga/.

Almost any day of the year is a good day to visit Longwood Gardens (Route 1, Kennett Square, 610-388-1000, www.longwoodgardens.org).

This year, June 1 is an especially good day to visit Longwood. It’s the day for the site’s annual Wine & Jazz Festival.

Visitors can enjoy the sights and sounds of live music while savoring wines from around the world. Guests will be able to sip along to exceptional jazz from Grammy Award-winning musicians, and, after the sun goes down, catch a jazz-inspired evening fountain show.

The weekend’s activities will begin with “Wine & Jazz All Stars” on May 31 starting at 7:30.

The roster of performers for this year’s “Wine & Jazz” event includes Delfeayo Marsalis, Stefon Harris, Anat Cohen, Bria Skonberg,

High & Mighty Brass, and the Mike Kennedy Trio.

The biggest attraction at Longwood right now is the Festival of Fountains, which is running through September 29.

With fountains that jet as high as 175 feet, gardens filled with colorful summer blooms, shade-friendly trees, exotic day- and night-blooming water lilies, and live music outdoors, Longwood gardens has something for everyone.

The fountain project took two years and $90 million in renovations. The fountain features more than 1,300 jets and streams, a similar amount of LEDs, a variety of flame features and a wide array of plants from around the world.

Longwood’s popular Main Fountain Garden has returned for a second season after attracting more than 600,000 guests last year with its 1,719 jets twirling and dancing to music. The fountains perform five-minute shows daily at 10:15 a.m., and 12:15, 2:15 and 4:15 p.m.

At night, Illuminated Fountain Performances return featuring a selection of dynamic new shows and past favorites. They are performed every Thursday, Friday and Saturday evening. In addition to the Main Fountain Garden, Longwood is also home to a collection of other fountain gardens, including the enchanting Italian Water Garden and Open Air Theatre fountains, which also perform daily.

The ultra-popular Festival of Fountains features the gardens in their summer splendor. Flowering annuals and perennials abound, as well as the breathtaking Waterlily Display that showcases aquatic plants from all over the world.

Visitors can take a walk in the expansive Meadow Garden or enjoy a shady stroll among Longwood’s historic trees. The outdoor Children’s Corner features a garden designed just for kids, while the Idea Garden is a showcase of plant combinations, innovative vegetable gardens, and unusual plant varieties to inspire guests to try at home. 

The Beer Garden is open Thursday-Saturday evenings with alfresco dining and Longwood Signature Brews created by Victory Brewing Company using ingredients grown at Longwood. Regional artists perform live in the Beer Garden from 6-9 p.m. May through August and 5-8 p.m. in September.

Admission to Longwood Gardens is $23 for adults, $20 for seniors and $12 for youth (ages 5-18).

For a fun and educational day for you and your children, consider a visit to the Brandywine River Museum (Route 1, Chadds Ford, 610-388-2700,http://www.brandywinemuseum.org) on June 2 from 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

On the first Sunday of each month, the museum presents a special free event for children called “First Sundays for Families.”

In addition to a variety of activities geared for kids, the event will also feature Brandywine River crossing on a tightwire by the Funicular Circus. Teaching artists will lead art-making activities for all ages.

There is usually a special theme each year for the annual Bayard Taylor Memorial Library Home & Garden Day Tour (various locations in southern Chester County, 610-444-2702, www.bayardtaylor.org).

In recent years, some of the themes have been gardens and historical authenticity. This year marks the 28th anniversary of the Library’s Home & Garden Day Tour.

This year’s tour, which will be held on June 1 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m., has the theme —  “Walking Tour in the Kennett Borough.”

The 2019 Bayard Taylor Home & Garden Tour will feature 14 remarkable properties located in the Borough of Kennett Square. Participants are invited to “Stroll the Square” to discover the hidden gardens, unparalleled art, and historic charm of the homes in Kennett Square.

Visitors will also be able to sample food and beverages from local restaurants and merchants.

Walkers and wheelchairs cannot be accommodated on this tour. And, no children, high-heeled shoes or cameras (or photos with mobile phones) will be permitted.

The event will be held rain or shine. Tickets for the tour are $40.

On June 2, Victory Brewing is presenting its Fourth Annual Food Truck Festival from noon-5 p.m. at Kennett Square Brewpub (650 West Cypress Street, Kennett Square, http://www.victorybeer.com).

The Food Truck Festival will feature local food trucks, live music, a kids’ zone and a Biergarten.

The roster of participating food trucks includes Crossan Concessions, DonutNV, Natalie’s Fine Foods, The Polish Connection, Rigatoni’s Mobile Crab Cakes, Hoods BBQ, Kona Ice, McGlynns Roaming Raven, On the Roll, The Cow and the Curd, Nick’s Roast Beef, Sweet Magnolia Bakery, Taqueria El Amigo, Taste of Puebla, and Harvest Ridge Winery.

The Big Apple Circus, which is celebrating its 41st anniversary this year, is running now through June 16 at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center (100 Station Avenue, Oaks, https://bigapplecircus.com).

Many of the world’s greatest circus acts have performed under the Big Apple Circus Big Top. Each year, a new show with new attractions is created by many of New York’s most creative directors and designers. The most exciting new thing about this year’s show is a new ringmaster — Stephanie Monseu.

“This is a big circus,” said Monseu, during a recent phone interview from a tour stop in Peabody, Massachusetts. “We have 25 artists and, in total, 80 people moving from place to place. We have a number of tents including the Big Top and reception tents. The Big Top holds 1,700 people and no seat is more than 50 feet from the ring.”

Some of the featured acts are Jenny Vidbell with her horses and dogs; Emil Faltyny, who does a free-standing ladder balancing act; Gamil the juggler; The Flying Tunizianis, a double-wide trapeze act showcasing seven fliers and two catchers; the gravity-defying horizontal juggler Victor Moiseev; Andréanne Quintal, whose team of performers bounce off the walls in her feisty trampoline act; the “strongest mom in the world” Virginia Tuells and her husband Ihosvanys Perez with their breathtaking acrobatic act that combines dance, strength, flexibility, and passion in which Tuells handles a majority of the lifts.

And, of course, there are clowns — Mark Gindick and Adam Kuchler.

The regular performance schedule is Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays at 11 a.m. and 7 p.m.; Saturdays at 11 a.m., 3 and 7 p.m., and Sundays at noon and 4 p.m. Ticket prices range from $20-$75.

You still have a few days left to catch one of the area’s top festival events — the Devon Horse Show (Lancaster Avenue, Devon, 610-688-2554,www.devonhorseshow.org).

This year’s 123rd Annual Devon Horse Show and Country Fair is running now through June 2.

The Devon show is more than just another annual equestrian event. It is a family event that spans generations and traditionally marks the start of summer.

More than 3,000 horses are entered in the Devon Horse Show in over 30 divisions and more than 200 classes with prize money totaling over a quarter of a million dollars. The equestrian competition reaches its peak the final few days with the Devon Grand Prix and the Idle Dice Open Jumper Stake.

The Country Fair has food concessions, a garden café, sales booths featuring antiques, toys, hand-crafted items, Devon Horse Show souvenirs and over 30 other shops with jewelry, art, clothes and equestrian-related items. And, there is the Midway with its huge ferris wheel, old-time carousel and wide array of amusement rides and games.

Admission is $15 for adults and $7 for children (under 12) and seniors (over 65).

The 2019 Chester County Blues Barbecue will be held on June 1 at Wyndsor Farm (2550 Ridge Road, Elverson,http://www.chestercountyblues.com).

The 10th annual staging of the event, which is sponsored by the Coventry Lions Club, is slated to run from 2-7 p.m.

The festival is featuring four headline blues acts –Voodoo DeVille, Roger Girke, Bill Kirchen, and Joe Louis Walker.

Tickets are $15. Food, refreshments and beer will be available for purchase from vendors on site. Admission ticket does not include food and beverage. The organizers recommend bringing a folding chair for seating. Coolers are permitted.

On June 2, the Upper Main Line Memorial Association will sponsor the 151st Annual Memorial Parade in the Borough of Malvern. The parade, which is held every year on the Sunday after Memorial Day, will start at 1:30 p.m.

Founded in June 1869, the parade is recognized as the oldest continuously held Memorial Parade in America. The parade is expected to include at least eight bands including a Philadelphia String Band and the West Powelton Drummers, several military color guards, military and antique vehicles, floats, fire trucks and a few special surprises.

After the Parade, there will be the 203rd Memorial Commemoration in Monument Park.

On May 31, the Delaware Art Museum (2301 Kentmere Parkway, Wilmington, Delaware, www.delart.org) is holding its annual Backyard Bash from 6-9:30 p.m.

The Museum’s annual outdoor party features live music, food, art, and fun. In partnership with People’s Festival organizers, this event features local musicians, food trucks, family-friendly art activities, face painting, arts vendors, lawn games, and bar service.

Music headliners will be Nadjah Nicole and Nalani & Sarina. The event also features Universal African Dance and Drum Ensemble and Missy Bélgre.

The Museum’s Backyard Bash will start at 6 p.m. Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for youth

On June 2, the Marshall Steam Museum at Auburn Heights Preserve (3000 Creek Road, Yorklyn, Delaware, 302-239-2385,http://auburnheights.org) is presenting “Steamin’ Day at Auburn Heights.”

The site, which features the Marshall Steam Museum and the Auburn Heights Mansion, focuses on steam power when it presents “Steamin’ Days,” which run from 12:30-4:30 p.m.

Combo Tickets, which cover all rides and building tours, are $19 (13 and older) and $12 (age 12 and under). “Mansion Only” tickets are $12 and “Ride Only” tickets are $11.

Special attractions include a “Firing Up” demonstration using a Stanley steam car, tours of the antique-furnished Auburn Heights Mansion (which was built in 1897), rides on the Auburn Valley Railroad and in select antique automobiles from the Marshall Collection.

Also included is entry to the Marshall Steam Museum, which features the world’s largest operating collection of Stanley steam cars along with a 1930s working Lionel electric train display, a hands-on engine display, kids’ activities and exhibits.

This season, each “Steamin’ Day” will feature its own theme, with changing exhibits, activities and crafts so there is always something new to experience. The theme for June 2 is “Yorklyn Day.”

“Historic Autos at Winterthur” (Route 52, Wilmington, Delaware, 302-888-4600, www.winterthur.org), which is included free with museum admission, provides visitors with the opportunity to see a variety of vehicles from the past that have been maintained in pristine condition. The event will be held on June 1 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

This special one-day “Historic Autos” event at Winterthur will celebrate famous British vehicles of the post–World War II era featured in the hit Netflix show “The Crown” and include a 1 p.m. lecture. Port Royal Circle will be filled with a collection of Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Jaguar, MG, Triumph, and Austin-Healey vehicles from 1947-1964. In addition, this event will include Winterthur’s newly acquired Rolls-Royce Phantom I Pall Mall.

The “Special Lecture” at 1 p.m. will be “Ten Best British Motor Cars, 1947–1964.”

“Costuming THE CROWN” is on view in the Galleries until January 5, 2020. 

Admission to Winterthur is $20 for adults, $18 for seniors and students, and $6 for children (ages 2-11).

Much of the world’s tastiest cuisine comes from Mediterranean countries such as Italy, Turkey and especially Greece. Two of the area’s top Greek festivals are on the schedule for the next week.

The Grecian Food Festival at St. Sophia Church Grecian Festival (900 South Trooper Road, Jeffersonville, 610-650-8960,www.stsophiachurch.org) is running now through June 2. Then, the 44th Annual Greek Festival at the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church (808 North Broom Street, Wilmington, 302-654-4446, www.holytrinitywilmington.org) opens on June 3 and runs through June 8.

The free, family-oriented festivals both feature amusement rides and games but they are side attractions. Without question, the main attraction is the food.

The list of main dish items at St. Sofia’s festival has a wide variety of meat and vegetable items. Chicken Oreganato is Grecian-style chicken roasted with a mixture of lemon, oil and oregano, while souvlaki is grilled pork tenderloin marinated with special herbs.

Gyros are pita sandwiches featuring a spice-infused ground beef-and-lamb mixture that is grilled, sliced fresh and served with tzatziki (cucumber and yogurt sauce), tomatoes, onions and olives.

Pastitsio is a macaroni dish with braised ground lamb and beef that is topped with béchamel sauce and baked. A similar entrée is mousaka, which features layers of eggplant, potato, ground lamb and beef, which is then baked and topped with a light béchamel sauce.

Saganaki is a dish with seared vlahotiri cheese that is flamed with brandy and lemon and served fresh. Greek Salad, which is always a favorite, includes lettuce, feta cheese, tomatoes, Greek olives, oregano, salt, onion, cucumbers tossed in a light olive oil dressing.

Other selections that can either be a main meal or a side dish are tyropita, which is a Greek-style cheese pie in a crispy phyllo crust; spanakopita, which is a tyropita that has spinach added; and Dolmades, which are rice and meat wrapped in grape leaves.

The menu at St. Sophia’s also includes a fried calamari dish with fresh lemon, and patates tiganitres, which are deep-fried potatoes that have been lightly seasoned with Greek herbs and spices and topped with feta cheese.

For dessert, it’s impossible to go wrong with any of the traditional Greek pastries. The most well-known Greek dessert is baklava, which is made with multiple layers of thin buttered phyllo dough cooked with walnuts, spices and honey syrup. Kataifi features shredded wheat with chopped nuts and honey syrup.

Loukoumades, the Greek version of doughnuts, are deep-fried and dipped in honey with a dash of cinnamon. Floyeres is a baked dessert prepared with thin layers of buttered pastry sheets, almonds, spices, and honey syrup. Galaktoboureko is a custard dessert baked between carefully placed pastry sheets and covered in syrup.

Karidopita is a moist walnut cake with spices and syrup. Kok, which is the Greek version of Boston cream pie, is a chocolate-covered cake that is filled with custard. Diples are crunchy treats featuring crisp folds of thin rolled pastry dough that are deep fried and topped with syrup, cinnamon and nuts.

Greek cuisine also includes a variety of mouth-watering cookies including melomakarona (oval cookie dipped in honey and rolled in nuts),kourabiedes (butter cookie served with confectioner’s sugar), paximadia (zwieback-type cookie that is baked then sliced and toasted in the oven), koulourakia (butter cookie that is twisted, basted with egg yolk and baked.)

The menu for the festival in Wilmington also features mousaka, pastitsio, tyropita, gyros, Greek salad, souvlaki, spanakopita and dolmades along with arni (baked lamb), chicken and orzo, keftedes (meatballs in tomato sauce), Greek-style string beans, plaki (baked fish) and Greek rice pudding.

Greek Festivals also feature a lot of live music.

Greek-American groups from the Delaware Valley will play popular Greek songs and standards at both festivals. There also will be performances of traditional Greek folk dances. The festivals will also offer tavernas, which are bistro-style sites for dancing and drinking.

Other attractions at the free festivals are Greek grocery stores and sales booths with items such as Greek music, icons, custom-made jewelry, leather goods and fabric. There will also be a variety of children’s activities.

This is the time of the year when there are ethnic food festivals almost every weekend. This weekend’s schedule has another interesting options — St. Maron’s Lebanese and Middle East Cultural Festival (10th and Ellsworth streets, Philadelphia, 215-389-1000, http://www.saintmaron.org).

St. Maron’s Lebanese Festival, which runs from May 31-June 2, offers a wide array of tantalizing Middle Eastern dishes such as kibbe (bulghur, minced onions and finely ground lean beef or lamb), baba ghanoush (eggplant mixed with onions, tomatoes, olive oil and various seasonings) and tabbouleh (vegetarian dish with bulgur, tomatoes, finely chopped parsley, mint, and onion).

There will also be hummus (food dip made from cooked, mashed chickpeas blended with tahini, olive oil, lemon juice and garlic) and freshly-cooked shish kabobs and chicken kabobs. A kabob is a Middle Eastern dish featuring pieces of meat, fish, onions and peppers grilled on a skewer).

Other attractions at St. Maron’s free festival will be folkloric exhibits, arts and crafts booths, hookahs, children’s games, a performance by St. Maron’s Dabke Troop, cash prize raffles and live music by George Maalouf & Band.

The Big Bounce America 2019 will be held at Maple Zone Sports Complex (4881 Chichester Avenue, Aston, thebigbounceamerica.com) now through June 2.

The Big Bounce America is the largest touring inflatable event in the entire world.

It’s an action-packed event suitable for all ages and featuring some of the most unique and exciting custom-built inflatable attractions ever built.

The Big Bounce America has the world largest bounce house (Guinness certified), a 900-foot long inflatable obstacle course, a giant maze, slides, ball pits and climbing walls.

Tickets are $25 for kids and $30 for adults.

Another interesting event in Lancaster — “The Realization of a Beautiful Dream” — will take place on June 1 at Wheatland (1120 Marietta Avenue, Lancaster, 717-392-4633, http://lancasterhistory.org/visit/wheatland).

Occurring on the first Saturday of the month from March through October, the Living History at Wheatland program consists of a series of interactive and engaging glimpses into the life and times of President James Buchanan and his family.

Actors bring to life the people who lived here and the history of the site.  These historical figures interact with one another and with their audience. The theme changes from month to month.

On June 1, visitors can step back in time to Europe in 1855 to meet Harriet Lane and Queen Victoria and uncover the unlikely friendship that transcended the Atlantic Ocean as the two reflect on their experiences during Lane’s stay in England. During talks with Queen Victoria, visitors will learn about Lane’s diplomacy in balancing the connections she has made abroad and the duty she feels to her country.

The Living History program “The Realization of a Beautiful Dream” takes place on Saturday, June 1 with tours starting on the hour at 1, 2, and 3 p.m. Advance reservations are strongly recommended, and guests are advised to arrive 15 minutes prior before their tour entry time for check-in.

Tour Guides in period clothing bring history to life as you walk through Wheatland, beloved home of our nation’s 15th President. Wheatland is located on LancasterHistory.org’s Campus of History which is located just west of the City of Lancaster at the intersection of Marietta and North President Avenues. There is ample off-street parking available.

Admission is $15.

Another special event in Lancaster this weekend will be the “African-American Heritage Walking Tours” on June 1.

Tours, which depart from the Lancaster City Visitor Center (38 Penn Square, Lancaster), are available at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. The tour is a safe and easy walk that takes between 60 and 90 minutes. Comfortable walking shoes recommended.

The walking tours visit sites such as black businesses on Penn Square; site of Elite Hotel; Thaddeus Stevens & Lydia Hamilton Smith Historic Site; Trinity Lutheran Church; Lancaster County Courthouse; Hamilton Club; Saint James Episcopal Church; site of the Lancaster Train Station; Shreiner-Concord Cemetery; Fulton Hall/Old Jail; and Central Market.

Tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for seniors.

An interesting and educational look at America’s past with a special focus can be found in downtown Philadelphia his weekend.

Visitors to the old, historical district in Philadelphia on June 1 will be able to enjoy Fete Day 2019 at Elfreth’s Alley, which is located off Second Street (215-574-0560, http://www.elfrethsalley.org).

From 1-5 p.m., the oldest residential street in America will be hosting a traditional festival with colonial flavor.

The popular annual festival will feature Colonial crafts, music, storytelling, refreshments, scavenger hunts and a wide array of hands-on games.

Historic Tours of the 32 historic residences on Elfreth’s Alley will be offered between noon and 5 p.m. Tickets are $25 for adults, $10 for students and $60 for families.

On June 2, the Great Plaza at Penn’s Landing (201 South Columbus Boulevard, Philadelphia, www.delawareriverwaterfront.com) will be the site of the Irish American Festival.

The event, which is part of PECO’s annual multicultural series at Penn’s Landing, will feature all things Irish — tasty traditional Irish food offerings such as Shepherd’s Pie, bangers and mash, and scones.

The festival will present an array of Irish entertainment including pipers, Celtic bands and traditional step dancers. There will also be a variety of outdoor shops featuring authentic and traditional Irish goods.

The Irish American Festival, which runs from noon-7 p.m., is free and open to the public.

As part of Historic Philadelphia’s 13th anniversary celebration at Franklin Square (200 Sixth Street, Philadelphia, www.historicphiladelphia.org), the organization is illuminating the park with its annual Chinese Lantern Festival.

Now through June 30, Franklin Square (http://historicphiladelphia.org/chineselanternfestival/) will come alive every night with its Chinese Lantern Festival featuring more than two dozen illuminated lanterns – all constructed by lantern artisans from China.

Chinese-inspired performances will take place in Franklin Square twice nightly. Performances, which celebrate Chinese performance art and entertainment, are 30-minutes long and are scheduled for 7 and 9 p.m.

Festival hours are 6-10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 6-11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Admission is $18 for adults, $12 for youth, and $15 for seniors and military.

The Philadelphia Comic-Con, which is scheduled to run from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on June 2 at the Clarion Hotel Conference Center (76 Industrial Highway, Essington, 856-217-5737, www.philadelphiacomic-con.com), features comic books, trading cards and other collectibles — both modern and vintage.

The event, which has an admission fee of $3, also features a number of special autograph guests. This Sunday, the guest artists are Ron Wilson, 70s Marvel Comic Book Artist; Greg Larocque, Artist – Flash & Exiled Studios; and Darren Auck, Marvel & DC Artist.

The popular collectibles event, which is the area’s longest running comic convention, will host dealers from all over the Northeast with sales booths featuring Gold & Silver Age comics, action figures, non-sport cards (including Topps “Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens”).

Also featured will be Japanese Manga, gaming cards such as Pokemon and Magic the Gathering, original artwork and all the latest issues of today’s popular comic book series.

The roster of top-flight vendors includes veteran dealers and relative newcomers. As an added attraction, there will be hourly door prizes beginning at 11 a.m. with $100 in show cash to be given away.

On June 1, Hope Lodge (553 South Bethlehem Pike, Fort Washington, 215-343-0965, http://www.ushistory.org/hope/) will be hosting “Ales & Petals/Cars & Motorcycles of England Car Show.”

The “Third Annual Ales & Petals event and the British Car Show” will open at 10 a.m. and run until 4 p.m. at the historic site in Montgomery County.

Hope Lodge was built between 1743 and 1748 by Samuel Morris, a prosperous Quaker entrepreneur. Morris acted as a farmer, shipowner, miller, iron master, shop owner, and owner of the mill now known as Mather Mill. Hope Lodge is an excellent example of early Georgian architecture, and it is possible that Edmund Woolley, architect of Independence Hall, offered advice in building. Samuel Morris owned the estate until his death in 1770.

Visitors are invited to set up lawn chairs and picnic blankets in the site’s plendid gardens to enjoy food, live music and tastings of craft beers, wines and ciders and tour classic British Automobiles. This event will also feature tours of the mansion.

Tour admission is $8 for adults, $5 for seniors (age 65+) and for youth age 6-17, and fee for children under 5. Hope Lodge is a Blue Star Museum which means that active duty military personnel, including National Guard and Reserve and their families, are admitted free for regular tours from Memorial Day through Labor Day.