By Donald Wittkowski
They call it the Skimmer Festival.
What the heck is a “skimmer,” you may ask?
Well, if you want to impress your friends during a game of trivia, you can tell them the name refers to the straw, wide-brim boating hats that were popular with men during Victorian times.
All that aside, the annual Skimmer Festival in Sea Isle City also means delicious food, plenty of shopping and an array of family-friendly amusements.
Big crowds pour into town for Sea Isle’s largest festival of the summer tourism season. The Skimmer Festival jump-starts the local economy as Sea Isle transitions from being a small town of 2,100 year-round residents into a bustling vacation resort packed with tens of thousands of visitors during the summer months.
The two-day festival got underway Saturday in beautiful weather featuring sunny skies and temperatures in the 70s. It continues Sunday with an antique car show on the oceanfront Promenade from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
“With this weather, which is ideal, without a doubt, I would say this is one of the best Skimmer Festivals to date,” Sea Isle spokeswoman Katherine Custer said while gazing at the overflowing crowds Saturday afternoon.
The festival’s origins date to 1963, a year after a monstrous storm devastated the Jersey Shore. At that time, Sea Isle hoped to persuade tourists that the beach community was in recovery mode and ready to begin welcoming visitors again, so the Skimmer Festival was created.
Although the Victorian-era skimmer hats are obviously out of style now, the festival continues to embrace old-fashioned, family-style fun reminiscent of Sea Isle’s days as a genteel seaside retreat in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
Custer credited Sea Isle’s tourism office, the police department and public works department for organizing and overseeing the modern version of the Skimmer Festival.
“There’s a lot of moving parts to a festival like this,” she said of all the attractions.
On Saturday, the Promenade was lined with hundreds of tents occupied by vendors selling crafts and specialties. Excursion Park was brimming with amusement rides, face-painting booths and miniature art shows for the children.
There was also a food court offering everything from French fries to crab cakes to funnel cakes.
Laura Reith, of Phoenixville, Pa., brought her 6-year-old daughter, Ava Ferry, and 4-year-old son, Nolan Ferry, to the Skimmer Festival for the first time ever as part of a family outing.
“It’s all families here. There are so many young people,” Reith said of what attracted her to the festival.
Reith’s parents have a summer vacation home in Sea Isle. Now that her family has discovered the Skimmer Festival, she hopes to come back every year, she noted.
As their mother watched, Ava and Nolan both had their faces painted. Ava chose a unicorn design, while Nolan was transformed into Spider Man.
“He’s my favorite superhero,” Nolan exclaimed of Spider Man.
Reith and her children also enjoyed the amusement rides and the food. Nolan was looking forward to having something sweet after eating a hotdog and French fries.
After checking out some of the booths at the food court, Philadelphia residents Maryann and Jim Konrad, along with their daughters Grace, 9, and Maddie, 6, decided to try a little of everything.
“Crab cakes, crab balls, French fries and hotdogs. Everybody got something different,” Jim Konrad said of all the food his family was eating.
Shopping is another major attraction at the Skimmer Festival. Hundreds of vendor tents stretched along the Promenade. Jewelry, clothing, artwork, novelty items and much more were all being sold.
Dot Murphy, of Sea Isle, and Mary Ann Christie, of Broomall, Pa., each bought a decorative wreath while shopping together. They said they were tempted to spend more money at the Skimmer Festival, but ultimately picked out things they truly needed.
“I’ve learned that there are only so many beach things you can have in your house,” said Christie, who has a summer home in Sea Isle.
Murphy is an avid Skimmer Festival-goer. She estimated she has been attending the festival for the past 30 years, perhaps more.
What keeps her coming back year after year?
“I’m here almost every year. I love the variety. There’s always a lot to do,” Murphy said.
