The Sprit of Somerset Celebration

By: Donna Motta

Rain or damp or windy weather did not stop Somerset and area residents from coming out in droves for the annual Spirit of Somerset Celebration over the weekend.

The festivities were kicked off on Friday night with a chicken dinner at the Somerset Historical Society (the former Village School), followed by a family movie night. The weather was a bit damp, but that did not have an effect on those who wanted to come out anyway, and enjoy the company of their neighbors and friends while enjoying the delicious food and movie.

The fun-filled festival was scheduled to continue the next day at the Somerset Village Waterfront Park, but pouring rain and windy weather forced organizers to postpone the event until Sunday, September 13th. Luckily, the weather cooperated, and hundreds upon hundreds of local residents and families turned out to enjoy a number of free activities.

Sunday's events began as contestants lined up as early as 7:30am, ready to compete in the Soap Box Derby. Dozens of area children maneuvered their hand-built and decorated wooden racers down the steep hill towards the boat ramp and the finish line. Derby organizer Jeff Thompson was happy with the turnout. “With all of the work they put in building and detailing their race cars, every kid here is a winner,” he said.

After the Soap Box Derby, the Spirit of Somerset committee dedicated this year's event to long-time town employee and former Spirit of Somerset organizer Georgette Mandeville, who passed away earlier this year. As he unveiled the memorial plaque installed at the Waterfront Park Pavilion in her honor, Selectman Chairman Bill Meehan spoke fondly of Mrs. Mandeville. “If anyone had the spirit of Somerset, it was her. She was a wonderful lady, and we miss her,” he said.

At the top of the hill were various sized bouncy houses, dodge ball, basketball, and several other non-stop sports-related games, offered by Teamworks Inc. The sports games were not limited to children either. Parents and adults were also urged to try their skill to beat the youngsters, some of whom were quite competitive and left the adults in the dust.

Once leaving the sports area, you had to look both ways to cross the street since a small train was making its way up and down the road giving laughing children and adults a fun ride.

Somerset resident Ranee Levesque has been coming to the Spirit of Somerset celebration since her son was a teenager.

“Now he is twenty,” she explained with a smile, “so I have moved on to ‘borrowing’ other people’s children to take them here.”

Once you made it across the street, crafts tables were set up under the Pavilion for children of all ages to enjoy. Employees from a Piece of Cake were also on hand to do creative face painting, while promoting some of the games they have for folks to rent for children’s parties. Meanwhile, twelve year old Katie Motta, assistant Joindayo.com staff member, volunteered to sketch free caricatures of numerous children, who sat patiently and were delighted to have their “portraits” done by a peer.

As she watched a caricature being drawn, Ms. Donna Perry, a 16 year Somerset resident, said she always enjoys the event and mentioned after learning about JoinDayo.com that she is pleased there’s a community website to visit to get ongoing information about what is happening in town.

“It’s not always easy to find out what activities are taking place, so sometimes I miss out,” she said, “But not now with Joindayo.com up and running I’ll know what is happening all the time.”

Moving down the hill to the waterfront area, Mixed Company, a classic rock and R & B Band, set up near the sparkling water, and sang out their hearts to a captive audience. The fire department had a fire safety house for children to explore parked nearby. On the opposite side, adults and children alike stepped up to try their skill with a row of carnival games.

For those who wanted to cool off, a Flush Tank, and a small wading pool for tiny children were there to enjoy. In addition, food booths and picnic tables were set up for people to eat and relax in between the activities, which included video games on a huge screen.

There were also pony rides, and a petting zoo. The zoo was of particular interest when a runaway sheep had to be chased down and captured by anyone near by. The sheep was finally caught and brought back home.

The days events included a pet contest, where costumed dogs and cats strutted their stuff on the stage, along with turtles, ferrets, lizards, and other interesting pets.

The pie-eating contest was a big hit with the younger crowd, who literally dove face-first into a row of chocolate pudding and whipped cream pies to see who could finish first.

Later in the afternoon, at the very top of the hill at the Historical Society was a cherry tree planting ceremony to honor the memory of Mr. Charlie Doucette for his numerous years of dedication, service, and community spirit. Charlie, as he was known to many in the town, was one of the founding members of the Historical Society, and served as its treasurer until his death. Charlie was also a volunteer firefighter, a proud Korean War Veteran, and was very much into helping to promote local business in town. He has been greatly missed since his death in 2008.

Throughout the day, volunteers drove folks up and down the hill from the waterfront to the Somerset Historical Society, if they were having trouble doing so on their own due to the excessive heat. Selectman and Spirit of Somerset Chair Mr. Bill Meehan also helped by giving golf cart rides.

As the afternoon progressed, Karaoke singing was intermingled with the ongoing festivities, which ended at about 8:30 p.m. with a fantastic fireworks display. Even though it was a Sunday night, hundreds of people came out to enjoy the colorful display in the sky. The fireworks area was packed wall to wall with people anxious to enjoy the spectacular sight.

JoinDayo.com wishes to thank all the events organizers and volunteers for their hard work and dedication in planning the Spirit of Somerset Celebration event each year. It’s not easy to pull together such a phenomenal family-oriented event, but they do…again…and again…and again.

Anyone interested in volunteering for the Spirit of Somerset Celebration next year can register (it’s free) on JoinDayo.com, and we will pass the information on to the organizers.