So much of the public discourse and focus in Greenville stays fixed on the many problems faced by this growing community. Issues like crime and public safety, transportation and mass transit, proper planning and thoughtful land-use management can set neighbor against neighbor and help to inaccurately define this city as a place overrun by woe.

Then there are weekends like this — when the city’s annual PirateFest weekend festival unfolds at the same time that East Carolina University hosts its Purple and Gold Pigskin Pigout — and those fears and worries are pushed to the side for a few days of pleasant revelry. These opportunities are few and far between, so residents would do well to take advantage.

Few traditions that unfold each Spring and Summer are as enjoyable as the weekend festivals that serve as a staple of communities across eastern North Carolina. From Grifton’s Shad Festival, scheduled to begin next week, to Farmville’s Dogwood Festival later this month to August’s Watermelon Festival in Winterville, each event has a unique personality even as they all provide entertainment for the whole family.

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