Mike and Kay Sheane ride with Doodles in the Mule Day parade Saturday in Calvary.

Thousands of people looking for some traditional family fun found it at an event centered on a farming friend Saturday in Calvary.

The 38th annual Mule Day, sponsored by the Calvary Lions Club, featured a parade, a mule show, live entertainment and hundreds of vendors selling a variety of hand-crafted wares or home-style food.

Braxton Hook, 19 months, of Conyers, experienced his first Mule Day with his family. He waved to the mules as they passed by in the parade line.

His grandmother, Janice Johnson, held him on her lap and said Braxton was participating in a family tradition.

“We’ve been coming here since the 1980s,” Johnson said. “All our children have been here at one time or another.

“My husband likes the mules; I like the boiled peanuts.”

Peggy Thomas, of Tallahassee, Fla., also experienced her first Mule Day this year. She heard about the event from friends and came with a group.

“I came to eat,” she joked.

Gregory Vickers, also of Tallahassee, said he’s come for the last 10 years.

“I come for the food,” he said. “I like the fried green tomatoes.”

Lilly Estes, 6, of Attapulgus, visited some of the mules not in the parade but who were awaiting their turn to participate in the annual Mule Show, held at 1 p.m. in the arena.

“I like the animals,” she said.

Marilyn Watson, of Ashville, Fla., said she’s participated in Mule Day for many years.

“I enjoy the genuine fellowship of the people here,” she said. “I also like how it is an opportunity to pay respect to the area’s heritage and preserve its history.”

This year her entourage included Parsley, an expectant mother who was to participate in the halter and costume classes.

“She’s going to be ‘Mini Minutes Catering Service,’” Watson said.

Her costume included a chef’s hat and an apron.

Blakely residents Jennifer Bright and Sandy Scarborough shopped at the Palm Candle Lights booth, where they sniffed a variety of brightly-colored candles.

Scarborough said she’s been coming to Mule Day for years, a tradition she started with her mother as a child and one that she now continues with her daughter.

It was Bright’s third year, thanks to her friend.

“I really enjoy all the different varieties of items available,” she said.

John and Henri Broomall, of Canton, ran the booth.

“The candles are all hand-poured,” Henri Broomall said. “There are probably hundreds of scents we don’t pour any more because they don’t sell, but we still have many different scents.

“They are healthy, clean-burning candles made from natural palm wax.”

The most popular scent of Saturday was “Lemongrass and Sage,” she said, but there were also candles with names like “Sinus Relief.”

Marguerite Peterson, of Crawfordville, worked at a booth featuring a popular festival item, kettle corn.

Flavors included chocolate, cheddar, butter and caramel.

“We’ve been coming for seven years,” Peterson said. “We’ve never had a bad day.”