Pine Island celebrates annual Mango Mania festival

Saturday was Pine Island’s annual Mango Mania festival. People celebrated the tropical fruit fair with all sorts of activities, contests, and of course, mangos.

The festival returned this year for the 27th anniversary, but it almost didn’t happen.

“Initially when we started thinking about planning it were concerned maybe we shouldn’t have it we wouldn’t have any mangoes,” said Cynthia Welch, executive director for Greater Pine Island Chamber of Commerce. “And we talked to our farmers who said we need it more than ever, because even if we only have a handful of mangoes, people need to know we are here. We are working on it, and we will be back stronger than ever.”

Welch has lived on the island for the last 24 years and says this year is different in a variety of ways.

“We actually have more participation from island vendors than we’ve had in the past,” Welch said. “A lot of times, our mango growers just they do a lot of wholesale, they don’t need to be coming out to do little festivals, but this year, we’ve got more people coming out, and there’s a stronger island spirit this year than in others.”

Kevin Roche, a Pine Island local, made his way to Mango Mania for the very first time this year.

“This is something I’ve know people who live on Pine Island and they just said, this is a fantastic event every year,” Roche said. “And funnily, we’ve lived it for 25 years. We finally were here. We’ll be back next year.”

For families like Kimberly Bezerra with her two kids Sophia and Ethan, the Mango Mania festival is an opportunity to support local farmers while enjoying the juicy fruit.

“We come out to pine island all the time and pick up mangoes buck and Charlie’s place right there,” Bezerra said. “We always go over there and talk to them, and we try all the different kinds. She’s actually done tasting contests of the different varieties and stuff. So when we saw the signs, we thought let’s just go for the day.”

Mango Mania showcases local vendors and provides a platform for them to share their talents and creations with the community and future generations.

But what’s more important than showing off the fancy fruit or colorful art creations?

“Whether they’re the growers, or the farmers, or whether it’s an organization, they’re all out here, we’re all together, we’re showcasing how strong we are, and we can survive and we’re getting back on our feet,” Welch said.