When the wind was cooperating, freshly decorated kites soared in the sunny blue skies at Onset Beach on Saturday, Sept. 4, as part of the Onset Bay Association’s sixth annual Kitefest. 

Out-of-town visitors and Wareham families alike gathered on the beach to decorate and fly kites with the help of a few association volunteers, including Milly Burrows, Jane Haupt, Melissa Goodell and Noah Young.

Onset Bay Association volunteer Amanda Cobb, who coordinated the event, said Kitefest attracted kids from Wareham and Onset and also plenty of families visiting from places including Brockton, New Bedford, Rhode Island and New Jersey. 

The festival offers something new and different for kids to do, she said. 

“Kids don’t fly kites anymore,” Cobb said. “For a lot of kids, this is their first time.” 

She said Kitefest is typically a big hit with families, and the kids often fly their kites with their parents and grandparents. There’s no pressure because it’s not competitive, Cobb said. 

From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., plain white kites could be purchased from the Onset Bay Association volunteers for $5, and there were plenty of markers on hand for kids to spend time decorating their new kites.

“They spend about as much time — sometimes more time — decorating as they do flying,” Cobb said. 

Kitefest was held, in part, thanks to contributions from the Wareham Cultural Council, Cobb said.

The Wareham Cultural Council is one of more than 300 local councils around the state that receive funding from the Massachusetts Cultural Council to support community-based projects and programs in the arts, humanities and sciences.

Kitefest was the Onset Bay Association’s last official event of the summer, but the group is always looking for volunteers to help with events. Anyone interested can reach out to the association by emailing onsetvillage@gmail.com.