Sip & Stroll strolls on despite drizzle

A little rain wasn't enough to put a damper on Saturday's Sip & Stroll. 

Despite gray skies and sprinkles, the event's 120 vendors had no trouble attracting crowds of shoppers in front of Middleboro Town Hall.

Lorna Brunelle, the event's producer, credited the crowds to the stroll's dedicated shoppers and vendors.

"Also, the mini-cows didn't hurt," she said. 

Dolly and Maple, the two miniature Highland cows from May Royal Minis in West Brookfield, turned out to be a huge draw, with crowds lining up to cuddle, feed and take photos with them.

Lilli Shaw, owner of Green Matters in Middleboro, said she structured her daughter Olivia's 27th birthday around taking family photos with the cows. 

Adam and Molly Eldridge of Wareham brought their daughter Anna to the stroll specifically because they'd heard there were going to be cows. 

Visitors sipped on apple cider and coffee from Coffee Milano Cafe, dined on pizza from Central Cafe, snacked on homemade toffee from 1780 Farmhouse Bakery & Confectionery and brought home homemade sourdough from Bread & Beauty Wellness. 

There were also plenty of artisan goods to shop, from jewelry and clothing to handmade metal art pieces and custom birdhouses.

With 120 vendors, including several food trucks, the Nov. 7 stroll was the largest one yet, said Brunelle. The event has come a long way from the first-ever stroll 16 years ago, which featured 34 vendors.

Brunelle said if the rain had been worse, the event would have moved to Sunday, as it has three times this year so far. But that would have meant 50 vendors would have had to pull out, so Brunelle decided it was worth chancing the rain. 

"We can handle this. We're New Englanders," she said. "We can sit at a Pats game in the snow. We go to the sports games for our kids in the rain. We can go watch a three-hour parade in Plymouth in the snow and rain. We can come out here and make it happen."

Brunelle said that she was especially happy to be out and in community as she recovers from recent cancer surgery.

"It gives you a lot of perspective on what really matters," she said, "and a little bit of rain doesn't matter."

What does?

"Supporting art, and creating a community of cultural enrichment," she said.