“Saturday, April 27, 2013, will mark the second annual “Feast of Saint Mark Italian Food Festival” in Birmingham, Alabama…”

Everyone is still talking about the inaugural “Feast” of last April at Saint Mark The Evangelist Catholic Church. The event brought families and friends together they had not seen in years. It had multiple generations from the same family spending a great afternoon and evening together. And of course, good food, wine, and a musical program and bonfire were enjoyed. The second annual feast will be even bigger and better. After a complete SELL-OUT in 2012, we will expand and double the attendance to 3,000. We will also have upgrades food and beverage service and locations and a “rockin” entertainment program with a main stage!

What was learned in our very first year is that our sponsors were not your typical sponsors. They were family people looking to grow, share, and preserve a great culture and celebrate Mark the Evangelist. While most were funded by businesses, there were personal investments and commitments. The initial crowd expected was 800 but it turned out to be 1,500. In the end, an important contribution to the community and a surprise number of attendees making the business side of the sponsorship better than expected.

The Festival will begin with Saturday afternoon mass. Following will be an evening of great food, entertainment, and activities for the youth, and a bonfire finale for all to enjoy. Some of you may remember traditional Italian festivals from your youth, other cities you lived in, grandparents and relatives. There are close to 400 of these festivals across the United States with the oldest celebrating its 138th year in New York City. Many people and families in Birmingham have Italian roots and remember years ago when the culture was vibrant and active. This feast brings some of that back.

April is a perfect time of year with average temperatures between 75-80 degrees so the evening should be perfect. The location will be the beautiful church and grounds of Saint Mark The Evangelist Catholic Church on hwy. 119, just east of hwy. 280. This is the Brook Highland neighborhood adjacent to Greystone.

Birmingham is a city thirsty for community events like this one and the time of year is perfect. This festival features one of the most-loved cultures and food experiences to have shaped America.

Schedule of events (tentative)

  • Church mass and blessing
  • Procession to the festival area
  • Food experience open at 5:00pm

Local restaurant appetizers

Selection of main courses

Traditional Italian desserts

Music program “Main Stage” and strolling accordion player

  • Cultural items

Homemade Italian cookies and baked goods

Freshly filled cannoli station

Gelato

Grilled sausage

Novelties

Wine tastings

Cigar patio

  • Raffles and drawings of sponsored items
  • Bonfire finale on the grounds

The evening will also feature many other elements to accompany and enhance the food experience. While food is a key component of the festival, the goal is for participants to come and spend the evening along with their families and enjoy the food, culture, laughs, dance and make memories. Some of the elements in the works include;

Entertainment Program not to be missed!

  • Strolling accordion player
/
  • Dancing

  • Live bands
/
  • DJ's with music for all ages

  • Singers
/
  • Italian and crooner music

  • Traditional Italian dance performance

“Youth Piazza”

  • Pizza baking
/
  • Children's crafts

  • Italian ice
/
  • Youth rides

  • Face painting
/
  • Music/ Hangout area

This year, the festival will include a program with much information about the festival and the history of St. Marks. In addition, it will allow businesses and individuals/families to place advertisements in the program, benefitting both the advertiser and the festival. As a advertiser, you will be part of an event that will not only benefit your business but also build a lasting legacy to your heritage and your community. This event is growing rapidly each year and your sponsorship is what is making it all happen.

As a business, you will benefit from:

  • Very specific market along the Hwy 280 corridor - residential areas include Greystone, Highland Lakes, Shoal Creek, Inverness, Chelsea, Mt. Laurel, The Narrows, and many others
  • Captive market for the evening (expect about 3,000 participants)
  • Middle to upper income demographic

The Feast of St. Mark Italian Food Festival must be authentic and of high quality in order to properly showcase the culture and significance of the feast. For this reason advertisers are on an invitation basis only to businesses and organizations that highlight and demonstrate these two values.

The Feast of Saint Mark offers organizations and individuals the opportunity to be involved with the success of the event beyond attendance. The key to a successful feast is involvement, fellowship, and a genuine desire to build an event you, your family, and entire community will enjoy and be proud of for years.

Festival Program Advertisement Pricing (Program will be 8.5" x 11"):

Full page $600

½ Page$350

¼ Page$200

In addition to business ads, consider an individual or family advertisement with family photos, in memoriam, congratulations, family history, etc.

For more information contact:

Tom Stith

205-437-0806