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"It's Our Town Day"
Annual Event is huge success
by Edward Paul Greiff
 | | VFW Color Guard with Iraq Veteran, young lefty throwing a banana bulls eye, Larry Schriebman (on right) explains to Chef how to make Black Bean Chili, Darcy Academy dancers mesmerize the crowd. |
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It was raining. People were waiting. Delis, stores, and even cars were filled with people trying to stay dry, but through it all, the comment most heard on Saturday, September 15, 2007 was "It's our Town Day!"
The rain may have prevented Ed Hertzel and the Town Day committee from setting up the many vendor booths at the park, but the rain delay didn't prevent the parade route crowd from building as people claimed their advantageous viewing spots.
Adjacent to the wall of the Putnam Valley Post Office, tucked under an umbrella was a table with fresh baked goodies, coffee, and soda for the crowd of parade spectators and visitors to the Post Office. It was a bake sale to raise money to help Hope and her daughter Rose combat Hope's cancer expenses and the tidal wave of related medical and life expenses. The Darcy Academy of Dance sponsored the bake sale and dedicated their dance recitals during the day as "Dance with a cause," to help Hope and Rose. Anyone wishing to make a donation can do so through the Darcy Dance Academy, located above the Putnam Valley Post Office.
Then as if it were a movie cue, precisely at high noon the rain stopped, the clouds parted to reveal a clear bright sky, the sun came out like a heating lamp to dry things up and the Town Day parade was under way.
Leading the parade was the VFW Color Guard with an Iraq war veteran as one of the flag bearers. When they stopped in front of the viewing stand several young ladies called out to him and said "Thank you." The young veteran smiled and acknowledged their gratitude with a nod of his head and a whispered, "Thank you" in return.
There was a contingency of marching bagpipers in the parade and their marching cadence of pipe music, stirred the blood in viewers veins.
The Girl Scouts and the Library had thematic floats while the Volunteer Ambulance and Fire Departments marched in unison looking very sharp in their fresh pressed uniforms.
But the crowd stopper was the Darcy Dance Academy float, with some thirty dancers, balloons and flags. The float, stopped in front of the viewing stand, the dancers got out and they began dancing in the street. Their energetic dancing, the loud music, and the crowd cheering definitely put everyone in the party mood. "I enjoyed that parade" echoed members of the crowd as they headed towards their cars and the rest of Town Day in the Town Park.
The decision to have Town Day in mid-September, and the one-hour rain delay, and the promotional efforts of the Town Day committee certainly paid off because it was the largest crowd ever in attendance. Starting at 2pm, there were more young children, more teenagers, and more adults then ever before.
The opening ceremony featured Councilman Bob Tendy singing a powerful rendition of the Star Spangled Banner. His operatic voice bounced off the mountain tops in Putnam Valley when he sang.
A TD Committee decision to allow local merchants to have a free booth paid off because it seemed like every merchant in town was there; for some it was their first Town Day.
The wide variety of food offerings with their mouth- watering aromas and the cool temperatures made everyone enthusiastically indulge. Some of the gourmet offerings ranged from "Simply Bagels," hot dogs, hamburgers, sausage and pepper wedges, black bean chili, pulled barbeque pork, pizza, fried dough, cotton candy, and much more. Wherever you looked someone was eating something and it smelled so good you just couldn't resist.
Parents were able to relax and enjoy themselves because there were so many games and activities the kids, as well as the whole family, could participate in. Like little Energizer Bunnies the kids never stopped and when the band played the kids were rocking on the portable dance floor. Once again the Darcy Academy of Dance Competition Team showed why they are able to compete at the national level of dance competition.
Families and friends competed with each other on the very popular portable Obstacle Course. The cold didn't stop the 'dunk the coach' event from taking place, "Remember son - I love you," were the last words uttered before the coach got dunked when his son threw the football and hit the target.
No matter what field you looked at in the park there was some activity taking place; from the lower fields to the playground and picnic areas people were having a good time, it was fun.
As expected, the already large crowd began to swell even larger around five o'clock when people started showing up to claim their patch of soil to be in position to watch the spectacular fireworks. There were over six law enforcement officers, Fire Police, Sheriff Deputy's, and State Troopers stationed around the entrance to the park to direct traffic and control cars coming and going. Fortunately people were patient and road rage was on hold this evening.
After the last person left and the park was cleaned up and restored to order, the Town Day Committee could sit back, relax, and breathe a sigh of relief. They've all put in an extremely long hard day and have survived a years worth of preparation.
There's no pay, only the personal reward a volunteer feels knowing they gave their all and did their best. Because of them the world and the Town is a better place. They fulfilled their stated goals and objectives; "to return Town Day to the people." There is only one problem - they have raised the Town Day standard bar to a new level that is going to be hard to beat next year. Putnam Valley is fortunate to have such devoted, talented and caring people living in it.
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