ORLANDO — The Florida Festivals and Events Association recognized the Town of Orange Park and the Clay County Agriculture Fair among more than 200 events that submitted materials to its annual convention.

The organization specifically identified Orange Park’s Events and Recreation Coordinator Emily Dockery as the Emerging Leader of the Year after earning the Town a first-place award for its Mobile App, second-place for its Website and third-place for its Tickets and Invitations.

“I was completely surprised by the whole thing,” Dockery said. “I was in total shock. Sarah (Campbell, Town Manager) wrote an absolutely beautiful nomination letter. Sarah and Tasha (Hyder, Executive Director of the Clay County Fair) conspired to have my mother there. That should have rang some bells, right?”

The first-place award went to the Fall Festival, and the other two went to the Town’s Kids Fest.

The fair won four first-place awards for its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiative, Facebook, Photo and TikTok; two second-place awards for its Community Outreach Programs and Website; and three third-place awards for its Mobile App, Promotional/Marketing Poster and Radio.

“This is a reflection of our volunteers,” Hyder said. “We have the best and hardest-working volunteers.”

Nominations were accepted in 10 categories: Printed Materials, Outdoor Advertising, PR / Media Campaigns, photos, Promotional Items, T-shirts, Broadcast Media, Multimedia Marketing, events and Programming. Each category included three budget levels. More than 200 events submitted their materials for consideration.

A blue-ribbon panel representing media outlets, printing companies, website designers, photographers, promotional marketing professionals and social media experts judged the nominations.

“The SUNsational Awards have recognized and celebrated the talents of our members for more than two decades,” said Suzanne Neve, CEO of the FFEA. “We’re proud of our members and their events – and excited to recognize them in this way each year. This year, in particular, was incredibly rewarding as we showcased the innovation and resilience of festival and event organizers throughout the state during this unprecedented time.”

Hyder said she’s already working on new ideas for the 2025 fair, which is scheduled for April 3-15.

“I can’t say right now what they are,” she said. “You’ll have to stay tuned.”