The fourth annual Candor Daffodil Festival was held on April 30 at the Candor Ball Field. Sponsored by the Candor Chamber of Commerce, the Daffodil Festival is an expansion of Daffodil Daze, which has been held on the Zamoiski family property at 292 Candor Hill Rd. for well over a decade.
Staff members at Candor’s annual Daffodil Festival greet visitors at their welcome table. A framed photo in memory of Nancy Zamoiski was displayed; Nancy passed away in March, and was one of several Zamoiski children who carried on the tradition of Daffodil Daze at 292 Candor Hill Rd. in Candor, N.Y. (JoAnn R. Walter Photo)
Bright blue skies and warmer temperatures welcomed visitors to the ball field grounds for live music, vendors, food, and activities for all ages. Additional activities featured a book sale at the Candor Library and an indoor yard sale at the Bread of Life Food Pantry. The live music featured nine bands and solo artists who performed on two stages all throughout the day.
On a beautiful, sunny spring day, nearly 100 vendors were on hand at the annual Daffodil Festival, held April 30 in Candor, N.Y. (JoAnn R. Walter Photo)
Nearly 100 vendors were on hand selling handcrafted wood and craft items, jewelry, soaps and lotions, herbs, lavender specialty products, clothing and accessories, sun catchers, gourmet dog biscuits, antiques, local farm products, and more. Several food trucks offered choices for every taste bud, and booths offered cheese samples, wine, beer and cider tastings, and gourmet popcorn, just to name a few.
Krista Story of Barton chats with Daffodil Festival visitors on April 30 at her booth, “Pressing On Florals.” Story grows flowers, dries and presses them, and then arranges them in creative ways. (JoAnn R. Walter Photo)
Krista Story’s booth, Pressing On Florals, presented framed and other natural arrangements of her artistic talent. Story, from Barton, grows her own flowers, presses them, and then arranges them within creative designs. Story shared that she was excited to be a vendor at her first Candor Daffodil Festival. Like many independent makers, Story operates an on-line Etsy shop, and it is her hope that getting out to festivals and events will help grow her following.
Pictured are youth waiting excitedly for balloon art at Candor’s annual Daffodil Festival, held on April 30. (JoAnn R. Walter Photo)
Several vendors came in from adjacent Finger Lakes communities, such as Sunset View Creamery out of Odessa, N.Y. and the Ort Family Farm, from Bradford, N.Y. Tioga County is the gateway to the Southern Finger Lakes region.
A mother’s love for daffodils inspired the creation of Daffodil Daze. For two weekends in spring, the Zamoiski family opens the fields on their property to showcase an estimated 80,000 bulb flowers of some 174 different varieties, and nearly 60,000 of those are planted in the field behind their home.
Visitors enjoy a walk around a pond at Daffodil Daze on April 30. The Zamoiski family has been welcoming visitors to the 292 Candor Hill Rd. location for several years, and where some 80.000 bulbs are planted. (JoAnn R. Walter Photo)
A living tribute to Joy Zamoiski, who passed away in 2014, the Zamoiski children initially surprised their mother with a daffodil celebration in honor of her 85th birthday in 2009. Her name, JOY, can be seen from a rocky hillside that features 1,000 bulbs of the Dutch Master variety. Throughout the years, words created from daffodils include “FAITH,” “PEACE,” “LOVE,” and “WELCOME.”
In 2016, a daffodil creation honoring those with breast cancer was made from 1,600 Pink Ribbon daffodils. At the Daffodil Festival this year, a mammogram-on-the-move mobile bus was made available.
Visitors enjoy sunshine and blue skies while walking through daffodil fields at 292 Candor Hill Rd. in Candor, N.Y. on April 30. (JoAnn R. Walter Photo)
In 2021, 75,000 daffodils were delivered to over 10,000 recipients at nursing homes, hospitals, senior living and retirement communities, VA hospitals hospice and doctor’s offices, encompassing some 80 or more locations. The tradition was carried on again this year.
The word peace is displayed with daffodils. Planted in 2010, 1,000 Mount Hood bulbs, a variety of trumpet daffodils, fills a 21- by 41-foot landscape. (Photo by JoAnn R. Walter)
A loving and beloved mother of ten children, the daffodil deliveries spread the joy of Joy Zamoiski’s legacy. In March of 2022, Joy’s daughter Nancy passed away. According to family members, Nancy was a leader in the Zamoiski’s Daffodil endeavor from the start.
Visitors enjoy strolling the grounds at 292 Candor Hill Rd. in Candor, N.Y. on April 30. In the background is the word “Joy” crafted by daffodils, and in memory of Joy Zamoiski. Planted in the fall of 2008, the Zamoiski children surprised their mother on her 85th birthday in 2009. Joy passed away in 2014. (JoAnn R. Walter Photo)
For updated information on happenings in the Candor, N.Y. area, visit candornychamber.org. For Tioga County, N.Y. tourism information, visit experiencetioga.com.
I am SO PROUD to have known Mrs. Joy and the entire Zamoiski family. Mrs. Zamoiski was such a GREAT WOMAN, and she deserves all the love that is shown in the Festival. Greeting to all the Zamoiskis from El Salvador, where they visited many years ago. Love ya, guys.