By BRIANA HARRIS / Staff Writer

PELHAM – Councilman Maurice Mercer said he hopes the Family Fall Festival scheduled for Oct. 2 in the parking lot of the Oak Mountain Amphitheatre will be the start of a new Pelham tradition.

For the past several years, the festival has been hosted by First Baptist Church Pelham, but after Mercer and Mayor Gary Waters began meeting quarterly with local pastors to brainstorm ways to interact more with the community, FBC Associate Pastor Donnie Sisk said the church offered to make the festival a joint effort between the city and other churches.

“By joining forces we have a bigger scope and more people are likely to get involved and attend,” Sisk said.

When the festival was hosted by FBC, Sisk said about 1,500 people attended. He said he hopes to see that number grow to at least 2,000 people.

Mercer said these quarterly meetings began about two years ago as a way to unite Pelham’s clergy. Mercer said six pastors worked together to plan the Family Fall Festival and the number of pastors who attend the meetings range from six to 15.

“I knew all the pastors but they didn’t know each other,” Mercer said. “Whenever someone needs help and the city might not be able tot help, we can call on the churches. It’s interracial, interdenominational and we don’t bring in any political ideologies that might divide us.”

The festival will be from 4-6 p.m. and is free to the public. It will include inflatables, games, food trucks and carnival rides.

The festival is sponsored by FBC Pelham, Kingdom Christian, Cross Creek Baptist, Life Church and Heavenly United.

“I’d like for folks to come out and meet their community,” Mercer said. “We’re trying to do something, and it could be the start of a Pelham fall festival for years to come.”