Tercentennial Ball—

Tickets Available For The Big Dance

By Jan Howard

Plans are moving ahead for events scheduled during Newtown’s tercentennial celebration in 2005. Major Events Co-Chairmen Janet Woycik and Barbara Kasbarian told Newtown Tercentennial Steering Committee members last week that tickets are still available for the Tercentennial Ball on February 5. Two-thirds of the tables have already been reserved.

About 10,000 invitations were sent out for the ball, which will be held at the Fireside Inn. The ball will offer music for dancing by Third Shift, an eight-member band, of Huntington, dinner, and live and silent auctions. Plans for the auctions are going well, the co-chairmen said. Bob Tendler and Dr Richard Coopersmith are in charge of the auctions.

Tickets are $100 a person. Black tie and period costumes are optional. Many people are saying they will come in costume, Ms Woycik said.

The ball is the major fundraiser for the yearlong tercentennial celebration. The goal is to raise enough money to make it possible for other events to be free or have a minimum charge for attendees.

Ms Woycik and Ms Kasbarian said individuals interested in attending the ball should make their reservations soon by calling Ms Woycik at 426-4533. Tickets are limited to 400.

Individuals or companies interested in making a donation or being a corporate sponsor of the ball should contact John Martocci at Newtown Savings Bank, 426-2563.

Mike Fitzsimons, chairman of the Fireworks Committee, updated the committee on plans for a fireworks display on August 6, noting that bids would be going out to four vendors.

The fireworks are to be launched from fields at Fairfield Hills that are under the purview of the state Department of Agriculture, which has granted permission for the use.

Mr Fitzsimons told the committee members that they should expect approximately a 40 percent turnout. He estimated that 10,000 to 11,000 people would attend the fireworks display.

He has appointed the following liaisons: Kenneth Donahue, Police Department; Bob Palermo, Parks & Recreation and Governors Horse Guard; Kevin Cragin, Fire Marshal; and Bob Antonozio, bids.

Newtown Savings Bank has agreed to donate $20,000 for the fireworks display.

The fireworks will be in conjunction with other activities, including a family town picnic and vintage baseball game that would celebrate the town’s 1705 purchase of Newtown from resident Native Americans.

Board of Realtors members Marie Fodor, Jill Wolowitz, and Sue Catino told committee members that they have already sold more than 225 custom-designed pewter porringers.

The committee had given its permission to use the tercentennial seal on the porringers. The porringers sell for $20. They are available, while the supply lasts, at the Booth Library circulation desk or by calling Ms Fodor at 426-5679 or Sue Catino and Jill Wolowicz at 426-8426.

All profits will be donated to the Tercentennial Committee, Ms Fodor said, “for other projects you’re doing in town.

“We’re really working hard on this,” she said.

Vice Chairman Mae Schmidle said the tercentennial calendar, priced at $15, would feature the work of 12 local artists. It will be available for distribution on December 18 at Lexington Gardens from 11 am to 12:30 pm and from 1 to 2 pm at My Place.

“It’s been an enormous labor of love,” she said.

The calendar will recognize townwide activities for each month of 2005, she said, as well as have four pages of historical events.

“It will be a handsome piece,” she said.

Committee member Gordon Williams noted that the beard-growing contest would begin January 3 and 4 at the library from 4 to 8 pm. Participants must be clean-shaven at the inspection, he said. There will be three categories: beard, mustache, and goatee.

Donations for the tercentennial celebration may be sent to Newtown Tercentennial Inc, c/o Newtown Savings Bank, 39 Main Street, Newtown CT 06470.

The next meeting of the Steering Committee will be January 5 at 3:45 in the C.H. Booth Library community room.