By MOLLY DAVIDSON / Staff Writer

MT LAUREL—Shamfest, Mt Laurel’s annual St. Patrick’s Day celebration, is returning on Saturday, March 14. Sponsored by the Red Shamrock Pub and Area 41 Pizza Company, the fourth annual Shamfest will be an all-day celebration featuring food, music and fun.

Manning Place in Mt Laurel will be closed to traffic until 10 p.m. on March 14 for Shamfest. Gates open at 10:30 a.m., and the first band will take the stage at 11 a.m. This year’s bands include Brandon Stephen, Lee Burt, Missused, the Turn Outshine, Deputy Five, Kevin Harrison and DJ Burger.

Vendors will be on hand throughout the day providing food and beverages, and a Kid Zone will be set up to entertain younger attendants with rides, balloons and rock climbing, Red Shamrock Pub owner Henry Dailey said.

As one of the largest St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in the Birmingham area, Dailey estimated between 4,000 and 5,000 people attended last year’s two-day Shamfest celebration, and expects to “get thousands” this year as well.

Admission to Shamfest is $12, and free for children 10 and under. A portion of the day’s proceeds will benefit the Alabama Autism Assistance Program/the HANDS Program, a Birmingham-based organization offering “scholarships and therapy to children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders,” according to the AAAP website, Aaap-hands.org.

More information about Shamfest can be found online at the Red Shamrock Pub’s Facebook page.