ST. MARTINVILLE — It’s time for those who love a little spice to meet the heat during what is being billed as “The Hottest Little Festival” — the 2009 St. Martinville Kiwanis Pepper Festival.

The eighth annual event is scheduled for Saturday on New Market Street near the Evangeline Oak. There will be games, food and crafts from 10 a.m. until 7 p.m., with Geno Delafose & French Rockin’ Boogie on stage from noon to 3 p.m.

“Plans for the festival have been going very well,” said Marti Harrell, Kiwanis Club member and festival promoter. “We’ve been concerned about the weather, but hopefully it will straighten up by this weekend, with no rain.”

Even the paper plates are hot as Debbie Cherry discovered while serving hot food from Bon Creole's Seafood booth at the Pepper Festival in October 2006. The St. Martinville Kiwanis Club's 2009 event is scheduled to be held Saturday. LEE BALL / THE DAILY IBERIAN FILES Advertisement

Always popular among the festival attendees is the pepper eating contest. This year’s slogan, “Go hot or go home!” was written by Harrell to properly reflect the spirit of the event. Beginning at 3:30 p.m., contestants will race to see who can finish a variety of peppers with escalating degrees of heat.

To participate in the pepper eating contest, participants fill out an application and sign a waiver at the Kiwanis tent prior to event, said Kiwanis Club member Gerri LeBlanc, festival co-chairwoman.

“There are a certain number of peppers the contestants have to eat,” LeBlanc said. “The one who gets through all the peppers first wins. It goes from mild to hot to very hot.”

The Nik’l Beer Band, a fan favorite from previous years’ festivals, will be on stage from 4 to 7 p.m., closing out the day with music and dancing.  

Each year’s festival is better than the last, said LeBlanc, and all the festivals give something back to the local community. Money is raised for a number of local causes, not the least of which is the water safety program, Every Child A Swimmer, a program that makes ample sense for those who live on or near any body of water.

“It’s one of our big things,” LeBlanc said. “We take the kindergarten class from the Early Learning Center and give them five days of swimming lessons.”

In addition to swimming safety, festival money also go toward the club’s annual foster children Christmas party, pictures with Santa, a bike safety workshop and the organization’s newest program, Kiwanians Reading in Schools.

LeBlanc said work with the Kiwanis Club is exceptionally fulfilling, whether working with the Pepper Festival or with the numerous other programs.

“I’ve been a member 18 years,” LeBlanc said. “It’s all about the kids — about making a difference in the lives of children and the smiles that you see on their faces, their sense of accomplishment when they learn something.”

Admission is $5 for adults and $1 for children 12 and under. Visit www.pepperfestival.org for more information.