05/15/2026
Although our most treasured tradition is well underway, the ‘berry best’ is still ahead! We wanted to share Mayor Robbie Skinner’s official welcome as you make your way to Festival City:
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On behalf of our City Council, Administration, Staff, Public Works and Public Safety Departments, and our 6,000 residents of the City of Buckhannon, it is my honor and privilege as Mayor of greatest city in the state, to welcome you to the 84th annual West Virginia Strawberry Festival!
This week, we gather in celebration of a tradition that is far greater than any one ceremony, any one event, or any one generation. For 84 years, our festival has brought people together in a way that only something truly this special ever could. This festival is woven into our identity in this community — into the story of who we are as a city.
Each year, when Strawberry Festival week arrives, magic happens in Buckhannon. Our streets fill with laughter. Family members return home. Friends reconnect. Front porches become gathering places. Neighbors wave a little more often. Strangers become friends. And for a few near-perfect days, the ‘berry best’ parts of small-town America are on full display for the world to see.
That is what our festival truly represents. Yes, it’s pageantry. Yes, it’s tradition. Yes, it’s a celebration. But at its heart, the West Virginia Strawberry Festival is about people. It’s about celebrating community. It’s about pride of place. It’s about the memories we carry with us for a lifetime.
For those of us fortunate to grow up in this community, this festival marks the moments that have and continue to define our lives.
It’s grandparents bringing grandchildren to the parade for the first time. It’s tasting that first bite of strawberry shortcake at Chapel Hill United Methodist Church, volunteers working hundreds of hours behind the scenes, and neighbors coming together simply because they care about this community. It’s the music and street parties Downtown, seeing children run with excitement in their eyes, and feeling — even if just for a moment — that sense of belonging — from a time that seem so far out of reach today.
In a world that often feels rushed, divided, and disconnected, right here, right now, this week, in Buckhannon, our festival stands as a reminder that there is still tremendous strength in kindness, tradition, service, and hometown pride.
Buckhannon is everything a small-town America should always be.
In this community, we believe in, support, and show up for one another. We invest in our future while honoring our past. And year after year, this festival is a living proof of just how much we all truly love this place, and why this week means so much to us.
The West Virginia Strawberry Festival does not just happen… The traditions of this event are and have been preserved because generations of volunteers believed that this festival and this community have always been worth the investment. Board members, civic leaders, businesses, sponsors, public safety professionals, city employees, families, and citizens — decade after decade — have poured their hearts into protecting and growing this tradition.
And now, that responsibility belongs to us. Our challenge is not simply to celebrate 84 years, but we must ensure there is an 85th festival, and a 100th festival, and festivals for many future generations. Our responsibility is to continue building a community worthy of these traditions — a community where young families want to stay, where neighbors still know one another, where events like this continue to unite us, and bring out the best of us.
Because traditions do not survive by accident. They survive when communities choose to care enough to carry them forward.
Throughout this week, as we celebrate together, I hope we can reflect collectively as a community on just how fortunate we are to have this festival, and to be able to call this place our home.
I love everything about this festival. I love everything about this city, and I could not be prouder to have the honor of serving as Mayor of my hometown.
Thank you for continuing to believe in this community. Thank you for preserving these traditions. Thank you leading by example; showing the entire state what true, pure, and wholesome hometown pride looks like. May this week be filled with laughter, fellowship, wonderful memories, plenty of strawberries, but most importantly… good weather!
And so… Welcome to the 84th annual West Virginia Strawberry Festival, and Festival City, U.S.A.! 🍓🇺🇸
May God continue to bless this wonderful festival, our beautiful City of Buckhannon, the great state of West Virginia, and our nation as we celebrate 250 years together!
Respectfully and sincerely,
Robbie Skinner,
Mayor, City of Buckhannon
