Come May 12, it will be time to head south to the friendly south Butler community of McKenzie.

Downtown will be buzzing with activity that day as the town celebrates its first-ever McKenzie Fest, a community event sponsored by the McKenzie Volunteer Fire Department.

The McKenzie VFD wants to raise funds to help fill their empty coffers since the purchase of a new fire truck.

&#8220We hope to have our new truck here and in place for people to see that day,” said Ricky Matthews of the MVFD.

&#8220We truly needed the truck. But it has taken pretty much all of our operating funds to come up with the matching funds to the grant money we received. Now we need to raise more money for our general fund. There are still things we need to operate.”

From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., attendees can enjoy arts and crafts, musical entertainment by local artists and plenty of children's activities, including face painting.

The festival has 40-50 vendors lined up, Matthews said, with &#8220a little bit of everything offered for sale, from air-brushed items to wreaths made from wisteria and kudzu vines.”

Attendees can also expect to browse among items like handmade children's clothing, monogrammed handbags, sun catchers, key chains, wind chimes, jewelry and bead crafts, hot and cold packs, handmade home accessories, picture frames and candles, all types of woodcrafts, and even pre-packaged gourmet foods.

Entertainers already scheduled to perform include New Vision, Larry Pittman and Carl Tillery, with others, including a group of cloggers, to be added to the line-up, Matthews said.

For those hankering for some good eats-on-the-spot, concessions will also be available, including roasted corn-in-the-shuck, fried pork skins, hot dogs, barbecue and much more, including the Route 66 ice cream wagon.

Attendees may also donate $1 for a chance to win their choice of a gas grill or fish cooker.

Booth space is still available for $25 a space. Water and electricity hookups are also available for vendors at an additional charge.

&#8220We are looking forward to a really good day and hope folks will turn out and support us,” Matthews said.

For more info or to request booth space, contact the McKenzie Town Hall at 334-374-2311 or Ricky Matthews at 334-374-8346.