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Tickets are now available for Barksdale Cancer Foundation’s annual wine festival, “Miss Janie’s Sit & Sip”, to be held at the Osborne Street Park in Keysville on Saturday, September 24. Tickets can be purchased at the Springer Agency on King Street or at Keysville Building Supply on Four Locust Highway, both located in Keysville; Economy Auto in Wylliesburg; Anita’s Homestyle Cooking in Drakes Branch; or Village Arts and Crafts in Charlotte Court House. The event will take place from noon until 6 p.m.

So far, 15 vendors have committed to being at the event, offering everything from candles and tees to wine-themed items and wood crafts, plus beauty items, soaps, and lotions, jewelry, handbags and all manner of hand-crafted items.

“We are happy to be able to offer such an array of vendors, and we hope to draw a large crowd to enjoy and purchase their wares,” said Larry Shook, president of Barksdale.

In addition, there will be four popular wineries present. Two of the wineries, Bright Meadows of Nathalie and American Way of Chase City, have made a name for themselves at Barksdale’s previous wine festivals. This year two new wineries will join them, Devault of Concord and Woodbine of Buffalo Junction. The latter is the newest vineyard in the lineup and offers something unique to wine tasters… slushies!

“Oh boy, I cannot wait to try those!” said Lucy Keesee of Red Oak, who has attended the event in the past. “It should be a fun afternoon, and a great fundraiser to help cancer patients right here at home.”

A variety of beers will also be available. Another returning attraction will be the Tobacco Road Band, an extremely popular band composed of members from Charlotte and Mecklenburg counties. Their music blends old soul and blues, country, and some good old southern rock ‘n’ roll.

“Our music will make you move!” said band spokesman Ronnie Newcomb. “This is always a fun event for us and we are excited to be returning this year.”

Food will be provided throughout the day by Anita’s Homestyle Cooking’s food truck from Drakes Branch. Anita says she will be offering a variety of delicious meals, plus some treats catered to the wine tasting crowd. Event organizers are pleased to announce that they will be selling tickets for a handmade Crown Royal quilt donated by Coat of Many Colors Quilting Guild and a custom-made bar cart, donated by Daryl King of Victoria.

“We are always happy to have such beautiful items donated to our organization to raise money for our patients,” said Shook.

“Keysville is looking forward to hosting Barksdale Cancer Foundation’s wine festival fundraiser at Osborne Street Park, and hope it proves to be a very profitable event for them,” Mayor Steven Morris said.

Tasting and non-tasting tickets for the event may be purchased online through PayPal or by credit card by visiting the website, www.barksdalecancerfou.wixsite. com/mysite and clicking on the upcoming events tab. Please note that the link is not support through Google; please use an alternate web browser when purchasing tickets.

Advance tickets are $20 for tasting and $15 for non-tasting. Tasting tickets are $25 at the gate; non-tasting ticket pricing is the same at the gate. Barksdale is a grassroots organization founded in 1999. Its sole purpose is to give monetary and services support to Charlotte

County cancer patients. The foundation is a 501(c)3 non-profit manned by volunteers with no ties to any other cancer organization. If you know of a Charlotte County patient needing assistance, please call Wendy Lankford at (434) 470-1538.

If you would like to make a tax-deductible donation, it may be mailed to Barksdale Cancer Foundation, P.O. Box 225, Charlotte Court House, Va. 23923.