By JOLENE CRAIG
Ohio Correspondent

BELPRE, Ohio — Food, entertainment and apple butter took over Howes Grove Park in Belpre for the 30th annual Apple Butter Stir-off Oct. 4-5. This year’s event included more crafters and a European sports car and vintage truck show, all of which are new to the festival, said co-chairperson Willene Bacon.

“The whole community is involved this year,” Bacon said. Community civic groups involved include the Belpre Senior Citizens Center and the Belpre Woman’s Club.

The apple butter, which the festival honors, has been made annually for the past 15 years by Pioneer Presbyterian Church in Belpre and Boy Scout Troop 91, said Tom Webster, chairman of the apple butter.

“This is what makes the apple butter stir-off,” he said.
Members of the church and Scout troop showed festival attendees how to stir the condiment in copper kettles over open fires during the event. It took two weeks of evening work for the apple butter to go from fresh, whole apples to the finished product, Webster said.
“In all, it takes about 10 hours from beginning to end,” he added.
The Scouts’ earnings go to the individual boys’ accounts to be used for summer camp and other special projects. The church uses the proceeds for general projects.

The troop has made about 220 gallons of apple butter with members of the Pioneer Presbyterian Church for years, to sell at the festival for $3.75 per pint and $6 per quart, primarily using apples grown in and around Belpre.

The apple butter is made with apple sauce, butter, cinnamon oil and about 45 pounds of sugar per kettle. “We also add red hot candies to add color and more flavor,” Webster said.

All apples for the finished product are locally grown at Holdren’s Orchard in Little Hocking, Ohio.

“We picked 84 bushels this year for the apple butter,” he said.
As part of the stir-off, the Troop members and volunteers stirred apple butter both days of the event in cast iron pots, with coins in the bottom.
“It’s tradition to use five pennies, but we use five 50-cent pieces in every kettle because they have better weight,” Webster said. “They are supposed to keep the butter from sticking and burning on the bottom – but who knows.”

The fundraiser will make about $3,000 for the two organizations to split, he said.

Belpre Mayor Mike Lorentz said the stir-off is a wonderful event for the community to share. “This brings people together and it reminds you of a simpler time, which is a good thing,” he said.
This year’s festival was held in memory of Bob Stemple, a Lions member who died during the past year. Bacon said about 1,500 people were expected throughout the weekend, to raise about $3,000. The funds will go to help the club purchase eyeglasses and hearing aids for community members.