Magyar News, 1996. szeptember-1997. augusztus (7. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1996-10-01 / 2. szám
íi^e the ßood oCd days P Ians for the Hungarian-American Festival ‘96, began more than a year ago. Needless to say, a great deal of planning went into the event. From the beginning the participating congregations: Calvin United COchurch of Christ. Church of Resurrection, St. Emery’s Roman Catholic Church and the First United Church of Christ, endeavored to, bring our community closer together. I am happy to say that this goal was a resounding success. Members from each church worked side-by-side during the year of planning and especially during the three days of the festival. The crowds who attended the festival also confirmed our goal’s success. When a new venture is undertaken, there is always a certain amount of anxiety. Our festival was no exception. “Could we organize such an event?” “Would everything work?” “What do we do if it rains?” I can honestly say that each stage of the festival’s planning was undertaken with enthusiasm. Every aspect in the planning process was met with a “can do” attitude. The test came on Friday, June 28th- the first night of the festival. As the people]e began to crowd into Captain’s Cove and as workers began their individual tasks, we could see that yes, all of the hard work was worth it. People crowded the food booths and enjoyed their meals on a beautiful night under the meal tent. The delicious food was complimented by the entertainment provided by the Westport Community Concert. Band. An extra treat was the opportunity to view the July 4th fireworks sponsored by the City of Bridgeport. Buoyed by a wonderful beginning, we looked to Saturday with expectation. Saturday, June 29th, was a bright and sunny delight of a day. The crowds came early and continued through the day. Dinner time was especially hectic, but once again the workers from each church worked closely together. Many new friendships were made that day, which will hopefully carry over to any community events yet to come. After a while we didn’t need name tags anymore to help us remember people’s names. It was soon, “Hi Don, Tony.” “Hi Maureen, Helen” It was wonderful to see. Everyone enjoyed the New Haven Gaelic Highlanders, and Stan Daneilczuk’s group. Dancing, conversation and good fellowship were the hallmarks of the day. When people talk about Festival ‘96 in the future, they will mention the events of Sunday with a certain amount of astonishment and pride. Sunday began and ended with rain. Anyone visiting the festival site knew immediately that it would be impossible to stay there if the festival was going to continue. Because no one wanted to cancel, it was decided that we would move the whole festival to United Hall. Now this sounds simple enough, but let me say here and now that moving the festival would have been impossible without the wonderful efforts of everyone. Looking back on the moment now, I marvel at what was accomplished. We were serving meals within 1 1/2 hours of our original opening time. Remarkable! If anything brought the four congregations closer together it was working together to salvage our festival on that wet and windy Sunday. Gerry Szor, the chief elder of First United Church of Christ did an outstanding job directing the shipping of everything from the Cove to United Hall. In a real sense we held two festivals that weekend. An empty hall was marvelously transformed into a room full of people creativity By the flower box ltd ‘Bernadette ü(phaCmJIerasozvich Beszélünk magyarul Phone:(203)261 -3332 906 White Plains Road Trumbull, CT Oóól 1 THINKING ABOUT BUYING OR SELLING? LET JIM MAKE YOUR DREAMS COME TRUE! JIM BALLAS LET ME ASSIST YOU! CALL TODAY! Office phone: 374-0295 Voice mail: 394-5172 Serving Fairfield, Stratford, Monroe Milford Trumbull and Bridgeport Each office is independently owned and operated Page 4
