Vendor Fair View from the door

The words for this post have been roaming around in my head and while this is an overdue post, being posted a month after the event, I still felt I needed to share the experience and do it justice so here goes.

Sometimes in blogging, the words are in your head but you just don’t have the time to sit down and write them. I’ve been so busy this past month with graduating school, planning an international conference, planning a wedding, and job hunting that I have hardly had the time to take a break for my blog! I feel like I am neglecting a part of myself and it feels just wrong! This post is one of those times that you just need to write down what’s in your head, FINALLY.


On May 5th and 6th my fiancé Mike and I attended and volunteered at the Suffolk County Celiac’s  2012 Gluten Free Vendor fair. The group is a branch of the Gluten Intolerance Group and has been meeting for years once a month, unfortunately for me always on a night when I had night classes although I’ve been a member. Boo! 


When I signed up to volunteer I wasn’t sure what to expect, because I had only attended one meeting, but we had a great time. We went on Saturday to grab our volunteer shirts and take a look at the vendors, and on Sunday we volunteers. Mike and I helped stuff bags in the morning, and then tabeled the welcome desk for the rest of Sunday.

While it was a jam packed exhausting day, it was well worth the experience. It was wonderful to be surrounded by local volunteers and people from a far with similar medical backgrounds. We shared stories with great people, and got to know some of the group’s members who made us feel welcomed to return to their future meetings. We also learned some new tips and tricks to gluten free living. In addition, it was great  to be in an unrestricted food environment! Many of us cannot imagine easily walking around on any given day and getting your fill or gluten free pizza, brownies, pita, and much more! What a great experience.

The Fair itself was a huge success, with over 50 local, national and international, vendors. You had many of the typical well known companies, such as Rudi’s and Joan’s GF Greatbakes (a delicious local bakery), and some smaller less known companies such as Kitchen Table Bakers. We came home with a ton of food,  most of which was the samples you could grab at the vendor tables and the remainders of samples after the fair ended. I found A LOT of new products that I loved, so I figured I would share just a few!