On Saturday, Feb. 4, the McCleary VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars) Hall hosted its 2nd annual Love is in the Air Bazaar.

The event saw hundreds of visitors from the surrounding areas converge on the small East County town of McCleary to browse and buy products ranging from handmade soaps, handcrafted jewelry, wood carvings, books, and vast amounts of Valentine’s Day-themed decorations among other items.

“I’m actually surprised by the turnout for this one because this is only our second year doing it. In the first hour and a half, we had about 100 people come through the doors, which is amazing given that I thought we might have only 100 people throughout the entire event,” said Holly Pierce, the lead organizer of the bazaar and commander of the McCleary VFW. “It’s nice to see that half of our vendors were here for our Christmas bazaar and that the other half are completely new to here but have established roots in Grays Harbor.”

Pierce said one of the main changes between this bazaar and the first one they held a year ago was the reception of new advertising strategies. She said while promoting the event on Facebook and local bulletin boards in McCleary is helpful, having signs placed at the busiest intersections within the town was a proven difference maker.

“I think we’re seeing the reception we are today because while a lot of people want to help the VFW in its process of maintaining and updating our building, a lot of people also want to help out small businesses, who are having to make a living during these hard times, as well as find a different outlet to spend money at besides the big box stores,” said Pierce.

Outside of the 25 vendors stationed throughout the venue for people to peruse, there were also food and raffle items for sale, to which all proceeds go to the VFW’s building improvement fund. According to Pierce, the VFW has enough funding to replace the flooring in the side hall this month and will begin to plan a time for the entire main hall to be repainted in the summer.

“I love these little local events because nothing is overly expensive and it’s fun to see what type of neat things are for sale to get for myself or my husband,” said Meredith Neil, a McCleary resident. “I get to help out a family who is trying to build a business as well as keep this place looking good whenever we come down for bingo.”

Contact Reporter Allen Leister at 360-463-3572 or allen.leister@thedailyworld.com