WEEKEND BEST BET: St. Martha Cajun Crawfish Festival

St. Martha Catholic School will host its Cajun Crawfish Festival 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, March 23, at 4380 Fruitville Rd.

Director Rebecca Blitz and her friend Haven Beach — both Louisiana natives —  wanted to start a crawfish festival like the ones they experienced while growing up in Louisiana. Blitz once had the boil in her homebut said it grew in popularity and was too large to host. They started doing it as a fundraiser for St. Martha Catholic School last year, bringing in more than 1,500 people and raising more than $100,000. This year they are expecting to double both those numbers.

“It’s completely safe and for all ages from newborns to 105. There is something for everybody,” Blitz said.

Festival organizers have 2,000 pounds of crawfish shipped in from Louisiana for authentic boiled crawfish. Half Shell Oyster House will serve charbroiled oysters, Bone Fish Grill will provide bang bang shrimp and Michael's On East will serve fried chicken and rice and beans. 

In addition to food, the festival will feature two bouncy houses, a mechanical great white shark, a rock climbing wall, a blow up slide, face painting, a trampoline and dozens of games for both children and adults. 

Gumbo Boogie Band will play Cajun music. Budweiser will provide beer and free event parking will be available for the pubic. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children.