Like the crack of the bat at a baseball game and the green hills with blooming wild flowers, the annual Clayton Art and Wine Festival signals that spring has come to our little corner of the world.

The Art and Wine Festival, presented by the Clayton Business and Community Association, returns for the 15th year on Saturday and Sunday, May 1 and 2. All the features that more than 150,000 attendees during past festivals have come to enjoy will return: premium wines and beers, arts and crafts vendors, a food court, continuous live music and the popular Kiddieland. The Art and Wine Festival is open to the public with no admission charge. Saturday’s festivities run 10 a.m.-7 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

Ed Waraner, owner of Waraner Tree Service, will join the more than 100 vendors that will line Main Street and Marsh Creek Road. Waraner creates the very recognizable large wood carvings of bears, rabbits and eagles that are seen around town. The Smokey Bear carving at the Sunrise Fire Station on Marsh Creek Road is his work. The wood is all salvaged from his business – “designer firewood” he calls it, chuckling. Also among the artists exhibiting and selling t heir works is nature photographer Ted Arden. He uses transparent oils on photographs to create a vivid image. Each work is an original and no two photographs are colored the same.

CBCA president Ed Hartley and VP Keith Haydon assumed the festival’s co-chair positions “for this year only,” when City Councilman Joe Medrano stepped aside late last year from the post he’d held for several years. “We have over a dozen volunteer committees who work selflessly to plan and present the event,” Hartley says. “This year, we’ve had new people step up in important positions. We don’t pay anyone to coordinate this event or secure sponsors and vendors so we rely on our volunteers to take on all aspects of the festival.”

According to Hartley, many of the groups that CBCA donates to provide volunteers for this event and Oktoberfest. “This means that our recipients return the favor to us. The main portion of this help is with parking, Kiddieland and trash cleanup,” he adds. “The Boy Scouts are absolutely instrumental in picking up trash and breaking down boxes for recycling. The scouts and their parents come out in force to help.”

It takes more than 300 volunteers to plan, run and manage the event. Volunteers are still needed to pour wine and beer and sell tickets both days. If you can help, call the CBCA office at 672-2272.

Howard Kaplan is in charge of beer and wine at the festival, and he’s lined up Wine Thieves, Delicato Gnarly Head, Dancing Coyote and Saint Michelle Winery. Kaplan promises more beer and wine surprises this year to enjoy along with the delicious culinary treats from the Food Court.

All proceeds from the festival and other CBCA events are poured back into the community. The association is particularly partial to supporting the educational, cultural and sports programs at local schools.

“We keep our expenses as low as possible so that we maximize the amount that goes back to the community. That’s what our CBCA members want,” Hartley says.

To contact CBCA about the Art and Wine Festival or for membership information, visit claytoncbca.org or call 672-2272.