About 200 eventgoers roamed rows of tents, bouncy houses and food trucks at the second annual Sweet Potato Festival in the Waldo City Square Saturday. While the sun beat down overhead, hints of barbecue and kettle corn filled the air.
Hosted by the Waldo Area Historical Society, the event featured local businesses selling arts and crafts, clothing and desserts. Festivalgoers also got the chance to participate in a sweet potato dish competition. Held indoors, the competition featured categories including main dishes, desserts and a 12-and-under section.
Hosted for the first time last year, it was suggested to the city as a way to commemorate Waldo’s rich history. The event honors Thomas Kelly Godbey, a local agriculturalist whose work developing new strains of sweet potatoes lives on over a century later.
Beyond honoring its historical roots, the festival represents an effort to start a fresh chapter and bring new life to the town.
Waldo Area Historical Society president Linda Vlacos described her optimistic vision for Waldo’s future.
“We’re trying to make things happen in Waldo and get people to come and change our image,” Vlacos said, “and I think it’s working.”
According to Vlacos, Waldo had a reputation for being a speed trap with significant portions of its revenue coming from speeding tickets until its police force was disbanded in 2014.
A longtime member of the historical society, the 78-year-old Waldo native said she’d consider high attendance a success.
For vendor Mark Damohn, the festival represented an opportunity to connect with the community in the way he knows best.
Damohn, a 71-year-old UF alumnus and former Marion County Forest High School teacher, has written more than 50 children’s books, including “T'was The Night Before Kickoff,” a story about Gators football. The Waldo event gave him the chance to meet new people and continue to teach.
“I’m retired, but I still can’t stop teaching,” Damohn said, “so I teach through these books, and if I can put a book in a child's hands, it's going to create a lot of joy for that child.”
The historical society hopes to expand the Sweet Potato Festival for future years by adding events like a charity pageant, said Wendy Vivas, the festival coordinator.
Vivas recalls driving through the once vibrant town as a child. Now a 52-year-old resident of nine years, she believes it’s due for a change.
“For me, it's about bringing people to Waldo and having a good experience in Waldo to help Waldo build back,” Vivas said.
Residents can attend upcoming events like the fourth annual Waldo Homecoming Sept. 25–27 and the historical society’s Craft Arts Plant Festival in April 2027.
Contact Julia Miller at jmiller@alligator.org. Follow her on X @juliamill30.
Julia Miller is a freshman journalism student at UF working as a general asignment reporter on the metro desk. This is her first semester with The Alligator and in her free time, she enjoys watching movies, reading, and spending time with her friends.
