Community Impact
“Growing Together for Generations”
This year’s theme reflects the Festival’s long-standing tradition of bringing people together, honoring the past, celebrating the present, and investing in the future of the community.
It represents more than a celebration. It reflects decades of partnership between growers, volunteers, businesses, and the families who have helped shape and sustain this event from the very beginning.
A Festival With Purpose
The Mushroom Festival was built with a simple but lasting purpose, to celebrate agriculture while giving back to the community that has supported our mushroom growers for generations.
This isn’t just a weekend event. It’s a year-round commitment to strengthening the region and investing in the people and organizations that keep it thriving.
To date, the Festival has awarded over $1.6 million in grants to local nonprofits, including more than $173,000 in 2026 alone. These funds directly support organizations working on the front lines of community life.
Grant funding benefits a wide range of critical services and programs, including emergency response teams, youth development initiatives, food access programs, arts and cultural organizations, veterans services, and more.
Every vendor, sponsor, and attendee plays a role in this impact. What happens over this two-day Festival continues long after the streets are cleared, fueling real, measurable support for the community all year long.
Southern Chester County EMS – MEDIC 94
Camp Dreamcatcher, Inc.
Kennett Square Police Department
Oxford Arts Alliance
Oxford Mainstreet, Inc.
After-The-Bell
Canine Partners for Life
Oxford Area Chamber of Commerce
Kennett Fire Company No. 1
Treetops Kitty Café
Good Samaritan Services
Reins of Life
KAPRB
The Domestic Violence Center of Chester County
Mighty Writers
Cherry Blossom Vacations, Inc.
The Gathering Place at Kennett
Street Lamp
Unionville Community Fair, Inc.
Bringing Hope Home, Inc.
The Garage Community & Youth Center
Tether Foundation
Max’s Kicks for Kids
Friends Home in Kennett
Family Promise of Southern Chester County
Meals on Wheels of Chester County
Lucky Dawg Animal Rescue
Kennett Masonic Lodge No. 475
Po-Mar-Lin Fire Company
Unite for HER
Housing Partnership of Chester County
Longwood Fire Company
The Fund for Women and Girls
Handi-Crafters, Inc.
URA
Oxford Area Neighborhood Services Center
Arts Holding Hands and Hearts
Casa Guanajuato Kennett Square
Kennett Underground Railroad Center
Avondale Fire Company
YoungMoms
New London Counseling Center (NLCC)
The Barn at Spring Brook Farm
Chester County Connect Care
Swayne-Campbell-Testa Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 5467
West Grove Fire Company
Kennett Area Community Service
Friends of Anson B. Nixon Park
Union Fire Company #1
Carasmark
A Child’s Light
ALS United Mid-Atlantic
LCH Health and Community Services
Kennett Library
Bournelyf Special Camp
Kennett Collaborative
What the Festival Is All About
The Mushroom Festival is a celebration of everything that makes Kennett Square unique.
Visitors can enjoy:
A wide variety of mushroom-focused foods, from fried mushrooms to creamy mushroom soup and chef-inspired dishes
Hands-on learning about the fascinating process of mushroom cultivation
Craft vendors offering handmade goods, specialty items, and mushroom-themed creations
Local boutiques, restaurants, and small businesses throughout Kennett Square
It’s part food festival, part educational experience, and part community tradition, all centered around the mushroom farms that helped build the region.
A Festival With Year-Round Impact
While the Festival takes place over two days in September, its impact continues throughout the entire year.
Through its Grants Program, the Mushroom Festival provides funding to local nonprofit organizations across Kennett Square and Southern Chester County. These grants help support community services, youth programs, emergency responders, arts organizations, food access initiatives, veterans services, and more.
To date, the Mushroom Festival has awarded more than $1.6 million in grants, continuing to expand its support each year.
The Festival also contributes to ongoing education and awareness surrounding mushrooms, including research into their nutritional and health benefits.
Community at the Center
At its heart, the Mushroom Festival is a way for local mushroom farms to give back to the community where they live and work.
It highlights the people and businesses that make Kennett Square strong, farmers, growers, volunteers, small businesses, restaurants, and organizations that all play a role in the region’s success.
This is not just an event that happens in the community, it is an event built by the community.
Festival Facts
Festival attendance can reach up to 50,000+ visitors over the two-day street fair
The Street Fair spans approximately one mile through the Borough of Kennett Square
It is a family-friendly event welcoming guests of all ages
Visitors come primarily from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland
The Festival also draws national and international visitors each year
Strong regional growth continues, especially from Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington D.C.
The Festival is promoted through local, regional, and national advertising channels
Board of Directors
The Mushroom Festival is guided by a dedicated volunteer Board of Directors who help oversee planning, operations, and community impact.
John D’Amico, President
Jennifer Basciani, Vice President
Laura Price, Treasurer
Jim Hamilton, Secretary
Gina Puoci
Gale Ferranto
Eric Durynski
Lori Gebert
Carl Lowe
Rhonda Sarver
Lin Bove
Megan Kooistra
Gery DeStafney
Doug Doefler
Miranda Doyle
