Kayla Worthey has a passion for the Rhododendron Festival and home
Kayla Worthey came back home to Mentone and started working to make it even better. (Karim Shamsi-Basha/Alabama NewsCenter)
Festivals come and festivals go, but for Kayla Worthey, the Rhododendron Festival in Mentone is a lifetime passion.
Taking place the third weekend in May for the past 34 years, the Rhododendron Festival each year draws more than 15,000 people to the artsy and eclectic Alabama mountain resort town. Worthey is on the board of the Mentone Area Preservation Association (MAPA), which holds the festival.
Worthey, marketing manager with DeKalb Tourism, has been a part of the festival most of her life. To her, it’s a chance to boast about the place she loves, the place she calls home.
“I was born and raised in Mentone,” she said. “I moved away but have been back for 11 years. The Rhododendron Festival is our spring event and the Colorfest is in October. The two celebrations have been part of Mentone my entire life. We usually have around 70 vendors at the Rhododendron Festival.”
Alabama Bright Light Kayla Worthey puts her heart into Mentone, Rhododendron Festival from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.
MAPA and the Rhododendron Festival are not the only way Worthey helps Mentone and DeKalb County. She is also on the board of the Lookout Mountain Parkway Association.
When Worthey returned home, she began coaching girls basketball. Worthy and her husband volunteer at the Valley Head Athletic Club.
“I missed it here,” she said. “I grew up in this amazing area and had the whole town as a playground, essentially. I moved to Atlanta but really missed the outdoors, so I decided when it was time to settle down and start a family of my own, I wanted it to be here.”
This year’s Rhododendron Festival includes a Miss Rhododendron Pageant on May 12, music by local artists, and arts and crafts in many formats. There are also horse-drawn carriage rides, pony rides for children and a “Taste of Mentone.”
The highlight is always the potted rhododendrons sale.
The rhododendron plant is found growing mainly in Asia, but is also spread throughout the Southern Highlands of the Appalachian Mountains.
It may be the national flower of Nepal, but in Mentone it is the pride of a few hundred people who live atop Lookout Mountain, and in particular one person who has devoted her life to telling the world about her home.
“I enjoy spending my time working with others, doing things for people,” Worthey said. “My kids get to enjoy this with me, and I hope it encourages them to work for others as well.”
The Rhododendron Festival this year will be May 19-21. For more information, visit http://mentoneareapreservationassn.vpweb.com.
Alabama Bright Lights captures the stories, through words, pictures and video, of some of our state’s brightest lights who are working to make Alabama an even better place to live, work and play. Award-winning journalist Karim Shamsi-Basha tells their inspiring stories. Email him comments, as well as suggestions on people to profile, at karimshamsibasha@gmail.com.
