This is a contribution from a Swampscott High School student, as part of the Swampscott Tides Big Blue Student News selection.
Story by Joseph Blood.
Swampscott held its annual Strawberry Festival on the Town Hall Lawn on Sunday. Tents were filled with people, and the lawn itself was packed.
The Fourth of July parade led to the festival, where residents were met with live music, food trucks and a raffle by the cheerleaders. The Strawberry Festival included merchandise to celebrate the country’s 250 years and — of course — strawberry cheesecake sold by the football team.
“It was great helping out at the Strawberry Festival with the football team. It was a fun way to give back to the community, and we’re glad we got to be a part of it,” said Will FIcken, an upcoming senior who plays on the Swampscott Big Blue football team.
The football team had one of the most popular stands, with a nearly constant line until the end of the festival.
The Big Blue cheerleaders were also popular, selling raffle tickets. The chance was for a chance to win a poster covered in lottery tickets.
“We made a good amount of money from it, and the seniors picked two winners,” said Sasha Shadari, an upcoming senior cheerleader.
The money made from both the strawberry cheesecake fundraiser and the raffle fundraiser will go to support the respective teams’ 2026-27 sports seasons.
“At the Strawberry Festival, we cheerleaders rode with the football players around town in a truck to throw candy at people who attended,” Shadari said. “I think it was really fun seeing happy kids as well as adults attempting to catch some candy.”
The Strawberry Festival also included some unexpected guests, including people dressed in traditional colonial garb and a man cosplaying as Captain Jack Sparrow. The Pirates of the Caribbean character emerged from King’s Beach with the movie’s iconic flag of the Black Pearl. Before entering the festival, Captain Jack Sparrow stopped in front of the Veteran’s Memoriam Rock, laid his flag down beside it, and saluted the fallen veterans.
