Visit Poplarville on the hottest day in June and you are sure to end up at the epicenter of a celebration that paints the town in a blueberry shade of blue.
     The annual Blueberry Jubilee festival packs the streets of the city’s downtown area as patrons gather for fun and activities surrounding its historic designation as the Blueberry Capital of Mississippi.

     “I can always tell you that our festival will always be on the hottest day of the year, and we can guarantee you that,” said Tammy Krutzfeldt of Poplarville, vice president of the Blueberry Jubilee Council that organizes the event. “It is definitely a community event, because all of our community buy into the Jubilee. They put blueberries on their windows and blueberry products in their stores. Our restaurants have specialty blueberry recipes. We have blueberry sales. Everybody buys into it.”
     The Jubilee happens every year on the second Saturday in June. This year, a 2024 Kick-Off Party for the event was held on Friday, June 7, with festivities continuing through June 8. The festival is geared toward celebrating the robust blueberry industry in Pearl River County. This year is the 40th anniversary for the event that is hosted by Poplarville’s Blueberry Jubilee established in 1984. Streets are blocked off for the more than 10,000 visitors the event attracts each year.

     Shirley Wiltshire of Poplarville is president of the Blueberry Jubilee Council and is proud to have witnessed the growth of the event since she joined the group in 1989.
     “This is my 34th year to be volunteering with the Blueberry Jubilee Council,” said Wiltshire. “The festival has definitely grown from where it started at Mississippi Power and by the library.
     “We have now gone from say about 100 booths back in 1989 to now being over 200 this year. That includes our blueberry products, our foods, and then our arts and crafts vendors. Our live entertainment starts on Friday night when people just come and sit. We have storytelling from our Poplarville Storytellers Guild, which is one of the oldest in the state of Mississippi, and they lead off with their storytelling in the Board of Supervisors Room. We have a whole gamut of everything that you can have. There is something for everybody in the family.”

     Lots of blueberries were available on the courthouse lawn, and arts and crafts vendors lined up along Main Street with food and sweet Southern charm. The Jubilee is not just about food, however, as it is a full sensory experience. While also being pet-friendly, there was fun for all ages during the festival, which also included a golf cart parade, 5K and Fun Run, a car show, baby crawl races, a puppy pageant, and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) blueberry farm tours.
     Samantha Bland, Saucier, enjoyed attending the event with her fur-baby, “Bella.” The car show had 78 cars this year, and the puppy pageant is getting larger every year.  “I have attended the Blueberry Jubilee for the last one to two years, and I have really enjoyed it a lot. I love that it is family and pet friendly,” said Bland.

     A blueberry pancake breakfast was served at Pearl River Drug & Soda Fountain Saturday morning to benefit Poplarville Pretty. Kirkland Farms owned by Brandi Kirkland offered pony rides. Sheila Buras, Poplarville, who works with Kirkland Farms, helped bring smiles to children providing a pony-riding experience. Buras said, “It is always a joy to bring the horses to the kids who don’t get that experience.”
     There were 175 entries for the Blueberry Jubilee 5K which was opened with Anna Davis singing the Star-Spangled Banner. The 5K was sponsored by the Blueberry Jubilee Council, Rotary Club of Poplarville, and Diva Race & Timing Services. The Baby Crawl is certainly fun to watch, with the funniest part being the parents. The 2024 Baby Crawl winners were Miss Wilhemina in first place, Miss Harper in second, and Mr. Elijah for the third-place spot.

     Jubilee festival-goers were able to take a stroll down Main Street to view vendors. There was also an opportunity for them to grab some food and bring their lawn chairs and blankets for a seat on the lawn of the City Square Pavilion to listen, dance, and sing along to live music entertainment by Lisa Albritton Band, Twin Forks String Band, Davis County, Starz Band, Autumn Rise-N, Wayward Jones, Chase Tyler Band, and Cross Ties.
     Johnny Ringo & Eric Sharp were also part of the lineup of music entertainment for the event.
     “I really enjoyed the Blueberry Jubilee, said Eric Sharp. “This was our third year doing it, and it is always a great time. We had just as much fun this year; maybe even more. We love playing on the Coast…We will be playing at the Hard Rock, Ground Zero, and all over the Coast this summer, and for hopefully years to come.”

     Genealogist, photographer and time traveler, Diana Thornton, Poplarville, was set up as a vendor for her third festival, as she displayed and explained her work of art. “I use my graphic design skills in a different way. It’s just a fun way to have fun with photography and time travel with history connected with genealogy.” For more information be sure to visit www.geneaology.dianathornton.com or send an email to diana@dianathornton.com.

     Courtney Denning, Petal, Miss., displayed her Wild Roots collection of personally created all-natural, handmade products. “We are just getting started,” Denning said. “This is actually our seventh festival. We make all-natural, handmade products, and crafts also made with natural stuff. I have been making these products almost my whole life and just started selling them. People really like it, so I really want to give people what they like.” Check out Wild Roots at www.wildrootsnaturals.com or on Facebook.

     Gary Cooper, Picayune, attended the Blueberry Jubilee as he showed off his 1957 Chevrolet Belair on a club car-golf cart frame with a fiberglass body that he restored over the past two and a half years. Cooper also has attended Cruisin’ The Coast along with other events to proudly display his beautiful restoration project which he has given the name of “Lil’ Orphan Annie.”         
Among the vendors, the Christian Motorcyclists Association set up with free water as they had their motorcycles lined up for public viewings.

     A great high-protein, low-calorie snack could be had by stopping at the vendor booth for Uncle Paul’s Homemade Jerky. For about 13 years, Paul Richardson made high quality savory lean beef jerky, and after he passed away, his tradition has been carried on for the past nine years by Ocean Springs resident Gabriel Troutman and his wife, who learned how to make it using one of Uncle Paul’s dehydrators. Uncle Paul made the mild and the hot-flavored jerky, and Troutman’s wife came up with the teriyaki and cracked pepper flavors. Troutman said, “I am trying to talk her into making a sweet heat, but she only makes a sweet heat for me.” To learn more, visit Uncle Paul’s Homemade Jerky Facebook page.

     In addition to “all things blueberry,” the Miss Blueberry Pageant preceded the Jubilee on May 11, 2024. Pageant contestants competed for the Miss Blueberry titles in different age groups ranging from 0-18 years. Teen Queen contestants and Miss Queen contestants go through an interview process where judges ask them questions about community and blueberries. They are judged on how well they present themselves, and how well they speak to the judges. They also have an on-stage question to answer, and they are judged by their modeling skills. Pageant winners this year were Queen Miss Blueberry Anna Grace Amacker, Teen Miss Blueberry Charlotte Wiltshire, Junior Miss Blueberry Annabelle Cooper, Little Miss Blueberry Charleigh Mistretta, Mini Miss Blueberry Maddyn Blossman, Tiny Miss Blueberry Cambree Richardson, Wee Miss Blueberry Tillie Tarnok, Toddler Miss Blueberry Callie Smith, and Baby Miss Blueberry Nova Knight.

     Mississippi’s largest commercial fruit crop, blueberries are plentiful and have a significant economic impact. According to reports from specialists at the Mississippi State University Extension Service, the acreage for blueberries in Mississippi is estimated to be between 1,000 and 1,500 acres which results in 1.5 to 3 million pounds of fruit. Most of Mississippi’s blueberries remain in the state and are sold at local grocery stores, roadside stands, and at “U-Pick” farms.

     The Thad Cochran Southern Horticultural Research Laboratory in Poplarville is part of the USDA Agriculture Research Service. Krutzfeldt said, “We are happy to have the Thad Cochran Small Fruit Station in Poplarville, which is a Federal Facility. And we also have the Mississippi State Coastal Research and Extension Center. They work together to get better products, and they work on insects and small fruit developments so that they are pest-resistant, and disease-resistant.”  
     “We are thankful that we grow some of the sweetest blueberries around. We have lots of ‘U-Pick’ farms in our county and around. We try to promote them as much as we can, because last year our farmers suffered a lot with the drought; this year they have had bumper crops, so we have lots of ‘U-Pick’ areas around here. In the next couple of weeks, we will be promoting them, because they will be open for about another month or so.”

     Krutzfeldt added that while many Jubilee festivities are free, including kids activities, USDA tours and more, participants are encouraged to spend money with the vendors and offer support to other fundraisers happening at the event.
     “Our activities are always free…” said Krutzfeldt. “However, the doggy pet shows money raised goes to our SPCA (Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) to help out with our local Pearl River County SPCA group to help with the strays and other services they provide. So, we get food and money that we give to them.”

     Giving back to the community is very important to the Blueberry Jubilee from painting their community water tower, buying barricades, and giving scholarships to local community students. The money raised from T-shirt sales and more from the Blueberry Jubilee helps to provide scholarships to local community students in school. Two scholarships are given to two students who are in a vocational program at Pearl River Community College, and two scholarships are given to two students in a business program. “We just started giving the scholarships in memory of two of our members that we have recently lost,” Wiltshire said.

     The Jubilee is a big production that takes planning and cooperation of local businesses, community leaders, city workers, and its many volunteers. Area churches also pitch in to make the event possible, with First Baptist Church providing a big bubble play area for the kids. And Oak Hill Baptist delivered breakfast to all of the vendors.
     “I appreciate everybody that stepped up,” said Wiltshire. “We have a council of about 20 people, but it’s the city, the county, and the local community that come together to help us, including sponsors like Mississippi Power who have helped us tremendously. We are so grateful for everybody that steps up and helps us make this a successful day.”
     The next Blueberry Jubilee is scheduled for June 14, 2025. Anyone interested in being a vendor or volunteer can visit www.blueberryjubilee.net or email the Blueberry Jubilee at poplarvilleblue@gmail.com. You can also find the Blueberry Jubilee on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X.

Ashley Prima

Author, Public Speaker, Multimedia Journalist, Publisher, Writing Consultant, Blogger, and Podcast Host.