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Press Releases
PIE DAY DESCRIPTION
Braham, Minnesota, the “Homemade Pie Capital of Minnesota,” holds a
one-day pie festival annually. This includes pies in the park,
crafters, a quilt show and performing artists on the first Friday of
August. For more information call 320-396-4956 or check the web page
at www.braham.com
20th Annual
Celebration of pie culture in Braham
The culture of pie is going to be re-invented for
the 20th time at Braham Pie Day, a one-day festival on Friday,
August 7 in Braham, the “Homemade Pie Capital of Minnesota.” The
community is located one hour north of the Twin Cities just off
Highway 65. This year visitors can also come back to Braham for a
Celebration of Praise on Sunday August 8 at 6:30 p.m.
This day of family entertainment includes a small
quilts show, crafters, a collector’s car show, an antique bicycle
show, an art show, a pie trivia contest called “Pie in the Sky or
Pie in Your Eye,” an amateur pie-baking contest, two pie eating
contests, and over 930 homemade pies. Children are invited to
participate in the Kids ‘N Berries children’s art tent. Guests can
pre-emptively walk off their pie calories by taking part in Nature’s
Way One Mile Cherry Pie Walk at 9 a.m. Participants should meet at
the chiropractic clinic on West Central Dr.
Pie has inspired members of the Braham community
to write songs, odes, ballads, raps, plays, poems, make murals,
videos, street puppets, flags and folk costumes. Folks live by the
motto, “You can’t help but smile when you say ‘pie’.”
Featured performers this year are the Meire Grove
Band, Minnesota’s most continuous and oldest band, blue grass band
Siloa Creek, folk singer Heatherlyn, storyteller Rose
Arrowsmith-DeCoux, the Berry Fairy, Mr. Pastry, the Queen of Tarts,
and the Pie-Alluia Chorus.
Guests are
invited to stay for the weekend and enjoy the Community Celebration
of Praise at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, August 8, located in Freedom Park.
For more
information call 320-396-4956 or check out the web page to see
photos from last year at
www.pieday.com A new
place to learn more about Pie Day is at
http://kstp.com.
Scroll down to the “On the road” and then in the archives find, “How
Sweet it is,” a program that featured Braham and its pies, produced
by Jason Davis
Learn pie making, be a
Braham Pie Day volunteer
Folks
interested in making a lot of pie should sign up as a volunteer for
the Braham Pie Day work days on July 27, 29 and August 6. All this
effort leads up to the 20th annual Braham Pie Day celebration on
August 7. Braham is “The Homemade Pie Capital of Minnesota” and is
located one hour north of the Twin Cities just off Hwy 65.
The flour
is donated by General Mills in memory of Mark Erickson, who was a
Braham graduate and General Mills employee.
During
two-hour shifts workers mix and weigh pie dough, peel apples, pit
cherries, slice peaches and fill and bake pies.
“Experts
and beginners work side by side,” says Polly Grossbach, volunteer
coordinator. “There are a variety of jobs and you can start as a
cherry pitter, then work your way up to become an apple peeler and
finally join the ‘Peach People’.”
Call
320-396-2089 to sign up. Clean up occurs at the high school kitchen
on Monday, August 10. This activity is made possible in part
through support by Braham Area Schools and custodial staff.
Pie Day features
high-energy entertainment
Braham Pie
Day audiences have come to expect the best in arts and entertainment
at the one-day festival that celebrates pie on Friday, August 7.
Making first
time visits to the “Pie Capital of Minnesota” is Heatherlyn from
Minneapolis. Returning are the Meire Grove Band, the longest
continuous band in Minnesota, Rose Arrowsmith-DeCoux, who will do a
set for the children and the young at heart, Siloa Creek, and the
Pie-Alluia Chorus.
The
performance stage begins at 10 a.m. and continues through until 6:00
p.m.
20th annual Braham Pie
Day features Music, artisans
Many activities make up the program for the 20th
annual Braham Pie Day on Friday, August 7. Guests can enjoy their
first piece of pie at 10 a.m. simultaneously to the songs and tunes
performed by Siloa Creek blue grass band. That is also the start
times for the crafts show, the Sweet as Pie Collector’s Car Show,
the Pi-cycle show, the Small Quilts Show and the Pie A(r)t Squared
art and hat show.
The Berry Fairy and Mr. Pastry will serve as
hosts for the stage where everyone can listen to music from
Heatherlyn from Minneapolis, the Meire Grove Band, and the Pie-Alluia
Chorus and Rose Arrowsmith-DeCoux will tell stories for the young at
heart. Also at the stage are the annual pie eating contests, the
pie auction, the “Pie in the Sky or Pie in Your Eye” trivia contest
and the Tusen Tack Variety Show.
Activities continue on Sunday, August 8 at 6:30
p.m. with a Celebration of Praise in Freedom Park. A new place to
learn more about Pie Day is at
http://kstp.com.
Scroll down to the “On the road” and then in the archives find, “How
Sweet it is,” a program that featured Braham and its pies, produced
by Jason Davis.
The event is made possible in part through
funding from these local sponsors: ECM Sanitation, Smith Auction,
East Central Energy, Rural American Bank-Braham, and the City of
Braham. For more information call 320-396-4956 or visit the web
page at to see photos from previous celebrations at
www.pieday.com
Pie Day stage hosts Tusen
Tack Fashion Show
Braham’s second hand clothing shop, Tusen Tack,
will host its annual fashion show at Braham Pie Day at 11:45 a.m. on
Friday, August 7. Folks interested in modeling should visit the shop
on West Central Drive in downtown Braham prior to the festival. For
more information call 320-396-3794.
Geo-caching a la mode at
Pie Day
The Braham Park Board will once again offer an
activity at Braham Pie Day this year, called Geo-caching ala mode.
Participants should come to the Headquarters Tent at 10 a.m. to get
the first coordinates. According to Bob Aas, Park board member,
this activity is “a little like orienteering, a little like a
scavenger hunt.” At each stop along the hunt, participants find the
cache, leave something behind and take something out. This will be
an opportunity for guests to enjoy several of Braham’s parks.
The community
is located one hour north of the Twin Cities, just off Hwy 65 on
Minnesota 107.
Colorful characters
welcome guests to Braham Pie Day
Some colorful characters will be adding extra
flavor to Braham Pie Day on Friday, August 7 in Freedom Park.
The Queen of Tarts will appear at the Kids ‘N
Berries tent offering face painting from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The Berry Fairy can help make your pies sweeter,
while our host Mr. Pastry will certainly help guests feel welcome.
Look for them on the Pie Day stage, where they serve as masters of
ceremonies all day. They are also in charge of the “Pie in your
eye, or pie in the sky” trivia contest at 5 p.m. where teams can
compete to show their knowledge about the mathematical symbol pi,
the kind of pie you eat and bits of trivia about Braham.
To sign up for the trivia contest call
320-396-4956 or stop by the Headquarters Tent on Pie Day.
Pie-Alluia Chorus sings at Pie
Day
All voices
and abilities are invited to join the Pi-Alluia Chorus in Braham,
MN. this summer and learn a 30-minute repertoire of pie songs to
perform at Braham Pie Day on Friday, August 7.
Braham,
located one hour north of the Twin Cities just off Highway 65 is
“The Homemade Pie Capital of Minnesota,” and celebrates that status
with one-day pie festival each year on the first Friday in August.
The colorful
and costumed chorus will perform as roving minstrels at senior
living establishments Elmhurst Commons and Park Manor around the 11
o’clock hour, and will sing on the pie stage at 12:30 p.m. in
Freedom Park.
Kathy Hare,
voice teacher from Freeport, MN. directs the chorus and has
scheduled a rehearsal for Saturday, August 1at 2 p.m. at the Braham
Evangelical Lutheran Church on West Central Drive and Co Rd 4 in
Braham. She has composed a new song called, “Paella,” that will
premier at the festival this year. The repertoire also includes
“Billy Boy,” “Sunshine Pie,” “The Rhubarb of My Eye,” the
“Pie-Alluia Chorus” and “Pie R Pi” by Malcolm Dalglish.
There is no
cost to participate. “If you love to have fun singing, we welcome
you,” says Hare. “If you know of some pie songs that we should
incorporate into our repertoire, let us know by leaving a message at
the Pie Day office, 320-396-4956.
Braham Pie Baking Contest invites participants
Amateur pie bakers are invited to bring their
best hand crafted pies to the annual Braham Pie Day pie baking
contest on Friday, August 7. Delivery times are 8 to 10 a.m. at the
Braham Ev. Lutheran Church on W. Central Drive and Co. Rd. 4. The
community is located one hour north of the Twin Cities just of Hwy
65. The Braham Area Committee for Kids (BACK) sponsors this event
as a fundraiser for its outdoor recreation projects.
Categories are: fresh fruit and/or cream, single
crust, baked (includes custard pies), double crust, baked, junior
division, ages 8-12 years, teen group ages 13 – 17, and the Lifetime
Achievement, ages 70 plus. Bakers should deliver their pies in a
nine or ten inch non-returnable pie tin, with recipes included for
both crust and filling. There is a modest entry fee for each pie,
which will be reviewed by celebrity judges John Michael Lerma and
Rose McGee and then sent to the auction with Smith Auction at 3 p.m.
on the Pie Day stage in Freedom Park.
Two baseball items autographed by Minnesota Twins
player Joe Mauer will be included in the auction.
Proceeds from the auction sales will help support
healthy living for youth through outdoor recreation.
Celebrity
Judges John Michael Lerma and Rose McGee will judge pie baking
contest in Braham on August 7
Each year the pie baking contest planners at
Braham Pie Day try to find just the right “Celebrity Judges” to come
and review the pies submitted for competition. John Michael Lerma,
cookbook author, Food Network guest and pie competitor at the Great
American Pie Celebration in Florida will join the judging team again
this year with Rose McGee from the Twin Cities. McGee puts creative
energy into her sweet potato pie business as well as storytelling.
In the past Braham Pie Day has hosted Jane and
Michael Stern authors of “Road Food,” Sue Hoss, editor from
Country Magazine, Michael Jackson of the American Pie Council,
Anne Dimock, pie book author, Mary Bartz of General Mills and
associate home economists from the Betty Crocker Kitchens, Wayne
Gisslen, author of Professional Baking, Paul Booth from the
Minneapolis Community and Technical College, and Chefs Jim Lund and
Chris Dwyer.
Judges will
have a list of criteria to consider when tasting each entry and then
they will share their thoughts during the 3 p.m. auction, which is a
fundraiser for the Braham Area Committee for Kids (BACK). Entry
times are 8 to 10 a.m. at the Braham Ev. Lutheran Church, where
everyone will get their picture taken and have a chance to meet
other contestants to talk about pie.
How Fast Can You
Eat Pie? Come to Braham on August 7
Braham Pie Day offers two opportunities to eat
pie as quickly as possible at the one-day festival on Friday, August
7. Speedy pie eating is the main criteria to win the junior or
senior pie-eating contests at
5:30 and 6:00 p.m. in Freedom Park on Main Street. Braham is
located one hour north of the Twin Cities on Hwy 107 just off Hwy
65.
The winners will get their 15 minutes of fame and
possibly a photo in the local papers following the event. Contest
organizer Ellen Cunningham says, “Fame does not seem to be the
motivator for our contestants. We’re not sure why they choose to
participate, but we know that the audience absolutely loves to
watch.”
Each
competitor eats a whole pie made of graham cracker crust, filled
with blueberries and topped with whipped cream. Please call
320-396-4956 to register to become one of the seven candidates in
either contest.
Test your Pie and Pi Knowledge
at the “Pie in Your Eye or Sky” contest in Braham, MN
Folks who
know a lot about pies and a little about the mathematical symbol pi
are invited to form a team for the 3rd annual “Pie in Your Eye or
Pie in the Sky Trivia Contest,” which takes place at5 p.m. Braham
Pie Day on Friday August 7, in Freedom Park located on Hwy 107 in
downtown Braham, “The Homemade Pie Capital of Minnesota.”
Mr. Pastry
and the Berry Fairy work hard all year to come up with questions to
test the mettle of contestants. They say that it will also help if
teams know something about the town of Braham.
The goal is
to get the most answers right and win a modest prize. The team with
the lowest score gets to throw a pie in each other’s face. There is
no fee to enter.
Braham is
located one hour north of the Twin Cities just off Hwy 65. For more
information or to register for the contest call 320.396.4956. To
see photos from previous Braham Pie Day celebrations visit
www.pieday.com
Art & Craft Show is a big
feature of Braham Pie Day
August 7
One great
place to shop while at Braham Pie Day is the art and craft show, on
Friday August 7 in Freedom Park adjacent to Hwy 107. Braham is
located one hour north of the Twin Cities just of Hwy 65.
Crafters will
sell their colorful array of original crafts, pie designs and folk
art items between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.
For more
information about other program items at the festival visit
www.pieday.com to see
photos from previous years. To become a crafter or food vendor send
an email to
BrahamPieDay@hotmail.com or call 320-396-4956 and leave your
name and mailing address. Pre-registration is required. The show
does not accept registrations on festival day.
Braham Pie Day produces New
Cookbook for 20th Anniversary
One of the
creative activities undertaken by the Braham Pie Day committee is to
come up with pie related inventory to offer guests at Braham Pie
Day, on Friday August 7. Visitors can view a selection of pie items
at the Headquarters Tent in Freedom Park adjacent to Hwy 107.
The 2009
special includes a new cookbook celebrating 20 years of Pie Day
stories and photos. Items making a repeat appearance for guest’s
convenience are the 20th annual pie day t-shirt,
potholders and dish towels with new and contemporary colors, the
commemorative pie tin stamped by Aurelius Manufacturing, a traveling
coffee mug and the limited edition ceramic pie plates and crocks
created by Brush Strokes Studio in Braham. All items are printed
with the Pie Day logo.
Heartland Express
provides Park and Ride at Pie Day
For ease and
convenience in parking, Braham Pie Day guests can choose to park and
ride between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Friday, August 7 in Braham. The
Chisago Isanti Heartland Express does the driving and picks up
passengers at the Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church, Elmhurst
Commons and Park Manor and drops them at City Hall.
Organizers of
the Small Quilts Show and the Pi-Cycle Show, located at City Hall
and Braham Lumber respectively, especially invite bus riders to
visit their exhibits while waiting for the shuttle.
Kids ‘N Berries Tent
provides arts activities on August 7
Children who enjoy making arts and crafts are
invited to the Kids ‘n Berries Tent at Braham Pie day on Friday,
August 7, at the south end of Freedom Park. Local artists,
performers and girl scouts will provide a variety of activities from
10 a.m. to 4 p.m. This year’s Queen of Tarts will do face painting.
A special story time at the pie stage is scheduled for 1 p.m. with
storyteller Rose Arrowsmith-DeCoux.
7th Annual Sweet As Pie Car Show
featured at Braham Pie Day
Vintage and
collector’s cars will appear on 3rd street SW during
Braham Pie Day in the Sweet as Pie Collector’s Car Show on Friday,
August 7. Registration begins at 9 a.m. Braham is located one hour
north of the Twin Cities on Highway 107 just off Hwy 65.
All are
invited to vote for the people’s choice award, which will be
announced on the main stage just before the pie auction.
For more
information call the Braham Ford Garage at 320.396.2962.
3rd Annual Antique
and Collectors Pi-Cycle Show at Braham Pie Day
Since gas
prices seem to be on a roller coaster this year, Braham Pie Day is
encouraging bicycle riding at its Pi-Cycle Show on Friday, August 7,
located at 2nd St SW near the Lumber Yard. Bikes of all
ages and descriptions will be featured. To enter the show, or to
get more information call 320-396-4956.
Pie is the theme for Art
and hat show in Braham
Artists from all over are invited to muse on the
topic of the kind of pie you eat, the mathematical symbol pi, or
what is involved in raising, harvesting or preparing pie
ingredients. The Pie A(r)t Squared Art and Hat show runs from the
first Friday in August until the day after Labor Day at the Braham
Community Center, located at 103 W. Central Dr. in downtown Braham.
All forms are media are encouraged. All ages are
invited to enter at no cost. There are modest pie related prizes
donated by many local sponsors. Winners will be announced at the
Pie Day stage at 5:50 p.m. on Friday August 7. Deliver work to
Braham City Hall by Monday, August 3 to be considered for judging.
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