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Over seven hundred guests attended Greg Rhomberg's annual Antique Warehouse Fall Festival and Open House on October 2, 2005. This years theme was centered around their collection of campers and travel trailers. The area normally reserved for Greg's vegetable Garden across the street from the Antique Warehouse was transformed in to a campground, called Happy Acres. Displayed there was Greg's entire collection of travel trailers, campers, and everyone's favorite, the Hippie Bus.
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On the following pages you can find a number of captioned images from the event, giving a guided tour of the day.
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The campers were all set up in a row, and complete with all of the accessories that you would find in and around a real campground. They were completely furnished with all the amenities an outdoorsman would need. There were dishes and silverware, flashlights, lawn chairs, boxes of food and supplies, the beds were fully made and there was even a croquet set for the front lawn of the Branstrader.
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Along with viewing the campgrounds, guests could enjoy an array of other activities at Happy Acres. There were two different concession stands, featuring every different candy and treat that your sweet tooth could handle. There was a Concession Wagon that offered such classic carnival fare as, corn dogs, funnel cakes, ice cream cones, sundaes, milk shakes, root beer floats, lemonade, as well as orange and strawberry shake-ups. They also had frozen homemade ice cream delights including jumbo drumstixs, fiddlestix (ice cream on a stick dipped in chocolate and nuts) and chocolate covered bananas. The other concession stand was the Round House Confectionary. There, the guests could indulge in popcorn, sno-kones, Haagen-Dazs ice cream bars, cotton candy, and Evian bottled water. In addition there was ice cold Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Sprite and Barq’s root beer in little old fashion glass bottles that still require a bottle opener to remove the cap. The kids could also select from a wide selection of nostalgic candy, 32 square feet to be exact. Also in the Round House Confectionary, Greg's children sold Antique Warehouse souvenirs including tee-shirts, “floaty pens,” and key chains where all the proceeds benefited the victims of the recent hurricanes.
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Reserved parking was provided on the Happy Acres Campgrounds for the guests that drove their own classic and antique cars, which added another display for others to view. They drove everything from Jaguars to fire trucks. There were also many hands-on activities for the guests to enjoy. Many of them took a swing at the Hi-Striker, and everyone liked petting the lamas and goats at the petting zoo. We also had a pumpkin patch and straw maze for the kids to wonder and climb through, and don't forget the rides. We had mini train rides, pony and carriage rides, and a moon bounce. |
On top of enjoying all of these fun activities, and consuming all of the junk food one stomach could take, a complimentary picnic lunch was served (if you had room) on the front lawn of Antique Warehouse under the big top. The lunch was catered by hometown favorite Kenrick's, and included Southern Fried Chicken, Hickory Smoked Pork Steak Sandwich, Buttered Corn on the Cob, Molasses Baked Beans, and Sweet and Sour Cole Slaw. |
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Inside the Antique Warehouse were more fun and exciting things to do and view. Some of the attractions included a photo booth, an Allan Herschell Carousel for the kids to ride, antique fire trucks, classic cars, trucks, tractors, and horse drawn vehicles, classic soda machines, and arcade and pinball machines. Returning this year was the popular magician performing a array of tricks. New for this year was an airbrush tattoo artist and a caricature artist. Also new this year was the sports bar, for the Cardinals and Rams fans to catch up on the games, which could be viewed on one of two 50 inch widescreen high definition plasma television monitors. The sports fans could also enjoy a cold refreshing Anheuser Busch product and bar food like pickled eggs, and hot sausages, while they cheered the Cardinals on to victory in their last regular season game at Busch (however, the Rams did not fare so well). |
At the end of the day, after all of the soda was drank, all of the pork steaks consumed, and all of the ice cream licked, it seemed that everyone left with a sugar high, a full stomach and lasting memories of the good old days. Greg would like to express his appreciation to his family, friends, and volunteer staff that made this open house a great success. Thank you to those who sent thank you cards and e-mails. Each thumbnail below takes you to a different Image Gallery |
