Mule Camp Market Festival is a can’t-miss event for Dayna Kiley who has been attending since she was a child.

“I grew up in Gainesville,” she said. “It’s Corn Tassel to me back when I grew up, and I just love fall festivals — the atmosphere and all the crafts and crowds.”

And now that she has a family of her own she wants her daughter, Lilly, to have the same experience.

“We let her play on all the playhouses,” Kiley said. “That was pretty good entertainment. She loved that.”

The Kileys and thousands of other festival enthusiasts packed the square in downtown Gainesville on Saturday on a hot fall day for the annual event. The festival continues from noon to 5 p.m. today.

While shopping around at the various vendor booths and chowing down on the vast assortment of food options, festivalgoers were entertained by The Steve Bryson Band.

The band was asked by the Gainesville Jaycees to perform at the festival in order to raise money for their Empty Stocking Fund to buy clothes for kids at Christmastime.

“I love it,” Bryson said enthusiastically about performing. “Heck, look at all these people out here. It’s great to have all these people listening to us and we’re just having a great time.”

And a great time it was for those in attendance including Vickie Roper, who brought her husband, Jeff, along to spend the day outside.

“I always come. I love outside festivals,” she said. “I like the camaraderie of everybody coming together for an outside festival.”

The smell of food in the air and the sound of laughter and music was an aspect Vickie Roper said she enjoyed.

“The smells, the popcorn, the lemonade, just all that,” she said. 

Bryson and his band weren’t the only group raising money at the festival. Member from Gainesville’s chapter of Disabled American Veterans also were attempting to raise money.

“We’re out here to bring attention to the disabled American veterans,” said Jack Whidden, judge advocate for the chapter.

Whidden commended festival attendees on their generosity to donate money.

“It’s very amazing how many of the young folks come by and donate to the disable veterans,” he said.

A group of women also were raising money for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, which takes place Oct. 21-23 in Atlanta. 

Pink was the dominant color at their booth, where they were selling various pink items to raise money for breast cancer research. 

The group consisted of about 10 women, each of whom have set individuals goals of $2,300 to raise for the event in October.

Mule Camp wasn’t all about fundraising, though, as many parents brought their children to enjoy the many attractions.

Rachel Dillard and her friends, Sam Carpenter and Rob Collison, all students at Gainesville Exploration Academy, found excitement on the miniature bungee jump.

“It was fun,” Dillard said. “I like going high and I like flipping.”

Henry Troutman played drums at the opening of Mule Camp on Friday with his United Methodist Church of Gainesville Praise Group and was happy to enjoy the other events of the festival.

Troutman said he came out to “hear the music, eat some free chicken wings and have a good time.”

But his family also got to watch as he competed in a chicken wing eating contest, giving his daughter Alston a laugh.