SNOHOMISH — Frisbees floated and footballs flew.
Youngsters soaked themselves with a green garden hose.
Groups gathered in a shady tent to worship.
And the bands played on.
Freedom Fest 2008 drew a mostly young crowd from far and wide to Stocker Farms in Snohomish on Saturday, the second of three days for the annual event that features Christian bands and contemporary music.
This is the fourth year that Melynda Marshall of Redmond, one of dozens of volunteers, has helped out at the festival.
The lure is the music, she said.
“It’s amazing to me how music really reaches people,” she said. “Just seeing that makes me feel good. It’s a great way to reach people.”
Holly deQuilettes, who organizes the event with her husband, Don, and their three children, appreciates the volunteers who work behind the scenes to accommodate the roughly 3,000 people who show up each day.
“It takes a lot of people to do this,” she said.
Sheryl Sturm, a south Snohomish County resident who attends church in Bothell, kept one eye on the frisbee she was throwing with her 15-year-old son, Stephen, and the other on her 9-year-old son, Jon, as he frolicked in the bouncy house.
Over the years, it has been a nice family outing and a place where Stephen has made new friends, she said.
“I like the music and I like the friendly atmosphere,” Stephen said.
Sturm said her family was looking forward to the late-night bonfire.
“This time we brought marshmallows, cholocate marshmallows,” she said.
Several young people took turns on the tagging wall, a place where they could spray-paint a message with impunity.
Kyle Bailey, 19, who is from Northern California, couldn’t find a can with any paint, but wore his convictions on his left calf in the form of a tattoo of Jesus Christ wearing the crown of thorns and the word “Forgiven” beneath it.
Caleb Heck, 17, of Marysville was attending the festival for the first time. He went with Aaron Murray, 18, of Tulalip, who was at the festival for a third year.
“I’m mainly here for the music,” Murray said. “There are some good bands.”
Saturday’s toasty temperatures didn’t deter event organizer deQuilettes at all.
“Every time I feel like complaining, I think how thankful I am it’s not raining,” she said.
Reporter Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446 or stevick@heraldnet.com.
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