A lot has changed over the past 43 years, but the Conestoga Herb Guild is still going strong.

The organization will host its annual Herb Fest event on Saturday, Sept. 13, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Millersville VFW, 219 Walnut Hill Road, Millersville.

Admission is free.

Visitors will enjoy displays of herbs, herb products, and short educational presentations on the culinary and health benefits of herbs. There will also be refreshments and baked goods on sale that were made by members and complimentary coffee and tea.

Additional displays will include fresh herbs, succulents, wreaths, bath products, dried herbs, herbal aromatherapy products, fresh and dried bouquets, potted plants and potted herbs, and herbal vinegar.

Guild members will also educate visitors on the herb of the year, chamomile.

Two of the educational programs that will be presented during Herb Fest will by "A Day in the Life of a Bee" by Denny Gorman and "Thirst Tea for Knowledge: Distinguishing Different Types of Tea" by Heidi Bernard.

The event is a fundraiser for the Conestoga Herb Guild. For more information, go to http://www.conestogaherbguild.org.

Guild members Karen Keller-Eyer and Nancy Landis will be at Herb Fest. Keller-Eyer and Landis are the only charter members still in the group, which was initially an offshoot of a guild on the other side of Lancaster. Keller-Eyer attended the group's first meeting in October 1982 after her in-laws saw a notice in a newspaper.

In the early days, the Conestoga Herb Guild had fewer than 15 members and met at each other's homes. "I joined when I was engaged to be married, and I wanted to do herbal things for my weddings," Keller-Eyer said. "I joined with a friend Barbara that I worked with, and she and I did herbal things for my wedding. The guild has a lot of different people with a lot of different interests. I always sort of gravitated to wreath-making, and tussie mussies was my thing. Some people are more interested in the culinary herbs or the medicinal herbs, and everybody sort of took their interests, and we shared that knowledge."

Landis became aware of the guild through word of mouth. "I had heard about the guild through a friend of mine, and I went to the one of the original meetings," she said. "I was always interested in herbs, so I was very happy to find a group of people who I could discuss that with."

Landis has been going to guild meetings for 43 years. "I've enjoyed the programs and drying herbs," she said. "I enjoy making the sweet Annie wreaths. It's very fragrant. I've enjoyed learning about all kinds of herbs."

Landis has seen many changes. "In the '80s, herbs were a kind of a new thing in Lancaster County," she noted. "I had a friend who knew a lot about herbs, and I got interested. And now, of course, herbs are much more well known, but it's nice when new people can come and just get excited about all the medicinal and culinary uses and other things you can do with herbs."

During that time, the Conestoga Herb Guild has grown to 70 members. "It's different because we meet at a public place, and there's many more members, which means also we have more resources, people who are interested and involved in different ways," said Landis, who lives in East Lampeter Township. "There are pros and cons to having a small group or a large group, but I enjoy it now the way it is. It's always nice to meet new people and hear their perspectives, and the members are quite involved with newsletters and different outreach programs, which is nice."

The guild donates a book to the county library system when a member passes away and sends sympathy cards or a rosemary plant when someone in a member's family passes.

Keller-Eyer and Landis stated that Herb Fest will be worth the trip.

"It's about sharing time with the community, trying to increase our membership, and have people know about our existence," said Keller-Eyer. "I'd encourage people to come if they have any interest in herbs, because our president, Susan Atkins, she's very interested in medicinal herbs," said Keller-Eyer, who lives in Penn Township. "She makes a lot of salves and that type of thing."

Landis added, "If you come to the Herb Fest, I think you'll see the wide range of uses for herbs and like the different people and their interest in herbs. There will be demonstrations and talks, which is very informative, and if you have an interest, I think it would be a good place to start."