Lee and Amanda Graham, pictured here with their children Scarlett and Worth, own Tara Creek, a venue near Faison that hosts both indoor events (e.g. weddings and proms) and outdoor events (e.g. barrel racing and rodeos).(Tara Creek|Courtesy photo)
Tara Creek’s rustic barn can be decorated to accommodate a wide range of events, including weddings, rehearsal dinners, baby showers, proms, quinceañeras, and corporate gatherings.(Tara Creek|Courtesy photo)
Customers who rent Tara Creek’s event venue can choose to decorate the space themselves, or the Grahams will take care of the decorating, providing a ‘walk-in ready’ space.(Tara Creek|Courtesy photo)
Tara Creek will host its annual pro rodeo April 21-22.(Tara Creek|Courtesy photo)
During the past two Octobers, Tara Creek has transformed itself into ‘Terror Creek’ with a haunted hayride. Check the venue’s social media this fall for the status of this event.(Tara Creek|Courtesy photo)
Six-year-old Worth Graham, whose parents Lee and Amanda own Tara Creek, has a serious chat with Santa at the venue’s annual Christmas Tree sale in November.(Tara Creek|Courtesy photo)
On the rural property where they once raised turkeys, Lee and Amanda Graham now welcome brides and broncos, hosting events ranging from weddings and rodeos to haunted hayrides and Christmas tree sales.
Their business, Tara Creek, is located in western Duplin County, near the Bowdens community between Faison and Warsaw. With 50 acres and three barns, “we have a lot of good, useable space out here” says Lee. “There’s a lot of potential here.”
The first wedding held at Tara Creek took place in 2020 (long after the property had ceased to be a turkey farm) in a barn that, at that time, served as storage space for hay and a shop for working on farm equipment. A friend of the Grahams asked to use the space for his wedding, and they said yes. Once the hay and farm equipment had been removed, the cement floor swept clean, and strands of white lights strung overhead, the potential was obvious.
Although they’d had vague plans about one day opening an event space, their friend’s wedding put those plans on the fast track. “It looked so nice, and it all came together,” recalls Amanda, “so it was just a good time to kind of carry on, and guests from his wedding started calling [to have their own events here], so it just kind of trickled down.”
Since that first wedding, “unless it’s been for decoration, there’s not been a bale of hay nor a tractor back in here,” Lee notes.
In addition to weddings, the space works well for corporate events, baby showers, proms, rehearsal dinners and quinceañeras. The barn’s open layout (with an adjacent patio) is big enough to allow for numerous tables, plus a band and dance floor. Amanda estimates that most of the events held here have 100 to 300 guests.
Clients can rent the space “walk-in ready” with all decorations in place, or they can choose to do their own decorating. Either way, Amanda and Lee always remain on-site during the actual event to assure that things run smoothy and to lend a helping hand, as needed.
Whereas some venues have restrictions regarding the hiring of caterers, “we have very few, if any, restrictions,” Lee says.
Tara Creek’s event space is not rented out during the summer. “Our seasons are fall, spring and winter, because we don’t have air conditioning,” explains Lee.
This is by design, Amanda says. “If I were to put air in here, I could rent it every weekend of the summer, but I wouldn’t have my summer with my kids.” Being a stay-at-home mom to the couple’s two children, Scarlett, 13, and Worth, 6, is her top priority.
Taking advantage of the property’s versatility, the Grahams haven’t limited themselves to simply operating an indoor event space; instead, they also regularly host outdoor events, most notably barrel racing. Barrel racing (in which a horse and rider run a pattern around three barrels set in a triangular configuration in as fast a time as possible) can be found on Tara Creek’s schedule two to three times a month. Some participants are local, while others come from elsewhere in the state. “We get a lot from the Wake County area, we see a lot from Jacksonville,” notes Lee, adding that they’ve had some riders from as far away as western NC. Night-time barrel races tend to draw 300 to 350 spectators, with a smaller crowd of 150 or so for the daytime events. Food vendors are brought in for these events.
Once a year, Tara Creek has a larger outdoor event, a rodeo, which is held either the weekend before the North Carolina Pickle Festival in Mount Olive or the weekend after. This year, the Pickle Festival is scheduled for April 28 and 29, with the rodeo on the preceding weekend of April 21 and 22.
The rodeo includes barrel racing, but also adds in other events, like bull riding, calf roping and steer wrestling. In the past, it has drawn participants from as far away as northern New York and southern Florida.
Last year’s Friday night attendance was in the neighborhood of 2000 to 2500, with Saturday drawing a crowd of 3500 to 4000. “It was a very big turnout,” remembers Lee. “We ended up purchasing the field beside us just for parking.”
Rodeo attendees have the option of purchasing VIP tickets, entitling them to a catered dinner, VIP parking and seating, and access to the indoor bathrooms.
The rodeo is a family-friendly event, with food vendors, a mechanical bull, and — new this year — a train ride for the kids.
During the past two years, October has seen Tara Creek temporarily transformed into “Terror Creek,” with a special haunted hayride. The status of the popular hayride for this fall is up in the air, due to a conflict with other onsite events.
In November, Lee and Amanda do plan to continue their tradition of selling North Carolina Christmas trees. The sale takes place over two to three days, and includes inventories of live wreaths and garland, as well. Bow-makers are often on hand to offer their craft, and food vendors are a certainty.
For updates on all Tara Creek events throughout the year, check out their Facebook page or visit their website at www.taracreek.com.
For more information about renting the event space, call Amanda Graham at 910-271-2898.
Tara Creek is located at 136 Robert Hobbs Road, Faison.
