Seabury Hall’s 38th Annual Craft Fair Offers Family Fun for Mother’s Day Weekend
MAKAWAO, MAUI, HI – Maui is known for its scenic beauty, but when springtime arrives, Upcountry offers the best place to experience jaw-dropping splendor. Tall jacaranda trees burst into vibrant purple bloom along many of the roads, providing the perfect venue for a time-honored event that celebrates Mom and all-things beautiful – the 38th annual Seabury Hall Craft Fair.
This acclaimed Upcountry event takes place the day before Mother’s Day on Saturday, May 7, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Seabury Hall campus, just one mile above Makawao. The juried craft show features the work of some of Hawaii’s finest artisans and crafters – more than 100 in all – including woodworkers, traditional Hawaiian artists, jewelers, ceramists and weavers. It’s a relaxed setting for locating a unique “Made on Maui” gift that Mom will cherish. Live music, great food, a cafe with delicious treats, a silent auction and live auction, rummage sale, giant waterslide, plus games and bouncy rides for the kids ensure good fun for all.
This year’s entertainment line-up includes Gail Swanson, Dr. Nat and Rio Ritmo, Haiku Hillbillies, Marty Dread, Gene and Shea Argel, Troublemakers, Benny Uyetake and Glenn Kakugawa and Maui Pipe Dreams, Dani Girl and the Kryptones, plus Slam featuring David Choy and Clay Mortensen.
“The Seabury Hall Craft Fair has become a tradition for many Maui families, a way to extend Mother’s Day into an entire weekend,” says Gayle Hart, Seabury Hall’s parent coordinator and associate director of development. “People from all over the island enjoy coming upcountry to ooh and ahh over the beautiful flowering trees, and spend a blissful day on the 11-acre campus, eating delicious food, enjoying live entertainment and checking out the fun activities and exhibits.”
Admission is $3 for adults. Children ages 12 and under are free. Free parking is available as well as premium parking for $10. Help reduce trash and make this a greener event by bringing your own shopping bag.
All proceeds from the fair support Seabury Hall’s financial aid program. Over one-third of all Seabury Hall students receive some form of financial help through this fund. Without it, a Seabury Hall education would not be a reality for some of these students.
“With the goal of ensuring that financial need doesn’t get in the way of a Seabury Hall education, the parents, teachers and students work together for months in advance to prepare for the craft fair,” said Headmaster Joe Schmidt. “Seabury Hall’s Financial Aid Program provides deserving students an opportunity for a high-quality college preparatory education—which might otherwise be unobtainable for them—and also provide the school with a well-qualified student body reflecting a broad social and economic mix.”
The fair’s Restaurant Row will be brimming with delicious food items from some of Maui’s most outstanding restaurants, with dishes ranging from local favorites to exotic fare. Flatbread Company, The Westin Maui Resort & Spa, Four Seasons Duo’s, Thailand Cuisine and Hula Grill will host food booths. Other menu items will include hot dogs and hamburgers, Indian food, Max’s Greek salad, nachos, chow fun, turkey tacos, roast beef sandwiches, chili and rice, grilled cheese and corn on the cob. A mixed plate will feature delicious food items from Serpico’s, Wei Wei’s and Dr. Martin’s chili.
The Cafe will feature homemade baked goods, coffee, waffles with fresh Kula strawberries, Ono Gelato, mini doughnuts and fresh-squeezed lemonade. The “Chef’s Showcase” section offers a variety of special desserts made by some of Maui’s best chefs. Visitors can enjoy “Sampler Platters” of the finest desserts, from Haliimaile General Store’s “Lilikoi Chiffon Cake” to Sarento’s “Tiramisu.”
Kids love the thrilling Keiki Waterslide. (Helpful hint: dress the kids in their swimsuits. It’s inevitable that they will get wet.) Pony and miniature pony rides and a petting zoo also entertain the younger set. There will be face painting, games (everything from a lollipop tree to a fishing pond to Putt Putt golf) bouncy rides and three booths where kids can fashion their own handmade cards and crafts for mom. Feather Duster the Clown will be selling balloons and entertaining keiki from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
The silent auction offers great deals at local restaurants, hotels and activities. It will be open until 3:30 p.m.
A live auction will take place at 2:00 p.m. at Seabury Hall’s Cooper House. For those who want an advance look at the items that will be auctioned, there will be a preview hour between 12:30 and 1:30 p.m. The preview is an advance ticket opportunity that includes entrance to the fair, VIP parking, shuttle to the auction, gourmet desserts and coffee. Tickets are $25 per person and are available by calling Mallory Armstrong at Seabury Hall’s Development Office at 573-0068.
You can also check out this year’s auction items on the Seabury Hall website at seaburyhall.org; click on crafts fair/auction. New items are being added daily.
Seabury Hall’s Green Machine, a working group of students and staff committed to promoting sustainability on the campus, will be working to reduce trash from the Craft Fair by 50% or more. They are providing bins for recycling of paper, plastic and aluminum products, and will be working with a composting expert to compost leftover food products. The group is also hosting a sustainable product contest, in which Seabury students will be judged on products they have created that are earth friendly and made completely from Maui products. They are reminding craft fair attendees to bring their own reusable bags. But just in case you forget, Seabury Hall’s Alumni Association will be selling Seabury Hall logo bags. The Green Machine will also be selling innovative bags made from cleaned and recycled t-shirts.
Donovan’s Memorabilia will be selling about 50 different items of celebrity memorabilia, including a signed record by The Monkees, an autographed U2 poster, a signed poster of Brad Pitt and more. All items come with a certificate of authenticity. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Seabury Hall’s tuition fund.
To reach Seabury Hall, take Haleakala Highway to the traffic light at the intersection of Makawao Avenue. Turn left on Makawao Avenue and follow it into Makawao Town. At the four-way stop by Casanova’s Restaurant and Polli’s Restaurant, turn right onto Olinda Road. Go up the hill one mile. Free parking for the Seabury Hall Craft Fair is just past the entrance to the school on the left side of the road by the Oskie Rice Arena. For premium and handicap parking, follow the signs onto campus.
Information about the Seabury Hall Craft Fair can be found at https://www.seaburyhall.org/page.cfm?p=981. For more information please call Gayle Hart at 573-0068 or 572-7235.
