The city of Riceboro will host its ninth annual Ricefest for the next two weekends.

Ricefest is an annual celebration the first and second weekends of November honoring rice farming, which was a major economic activity in coastal Liberty County and especially in Riceboro. The inaugural Rice Festival was in downtown Riceboro in 2007.

Ricefest pays homage to Riceboro’s history and the Gullah-Geechee culture.

The Miss Liberty County Rice Festival Pageant is Saturday at the Riceboro Youth Center on Highway 17. Doors open at noon. Tickets are $7 for adults and $3 for youth.

On Nov. 8, Ricefest will host the first Gospel Music Showcase. This free event will be outside in downtown Riceboro beginning at 2 p.m.

On Friday, Nov. 13, the Homecoming Dance/Social will be from 6-11 p.m. at the Riceboro Youth Center. Tickets for are $10 each in advance and $15 at the door. VIP tables that seat eight cost $100 each. Comedian Big E and the Special Formula Band will perform.

On Saturday, Nov. 14, Ricefest’s main events take place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in downtown Riceboro. Events start a Parade at 9 a.m., followed by the Ricefest Cook-Off at 11. The best cooks in three categories — Rice and Vegetables, Rice and Seafood and Rice and Meat — will be selected by the judges, and prizes will be awarded.

Visitors will be able to sample all the rice dishes for a small fee.

Winners of an essay contest, for which entries were accepted in October, will be recognized Nov. 14.

Entertainment on Nov. 14 includes the Blue Notes, formerly known as Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, the Gospel Key Notes and Dakota Woods. The Blue Notes have a smooth Philadelphia soul sound. As Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, their biggest hits in the 1970s were “If You Don’t Know Me By Now,” “Wake Up Everybody” and “The Love I Lost.”

For more information, call Chris Stacy at 912-695-0481 or 912-884-2986.