by Bea Peterson
Billed as a “One Day. One Cause. One Community” event, Hoosipalooza lived up to the hype. Crowds were small, but everyone who participated had a great time! It began at the Nirvana Day Spa with scented candles, mellow music and guided meditation at 8 am. Very relaxing! Then there was coffee and breakfast at Bagels & Brew. At 9 winter tales were read to the little ones at the Cheney Library where there was also a display of beautiful handmade quilts and knitted items. At 10 kids put faces on balloons at Thorpe’s Pharmacy, and Julia Baker, Sandra Castro-Baker and John Hyde provided a fantastic hour of beautiful violin and guitar music at St. Mark’s Church. The music ranged from the classical to theater and movie themes to the Beatles!
[private]The sledding events were cancelled because there was no snow, but youngsters could swing a bat and see how fast they hit a ball, clocked by radar.
Barbara DeLuca walked the new Greenway with her daughter Laura Reynolds and granddaughter Amelia Reynolds. “Three generations of us,” Barbara said. Close family friend Marie O’Neil walked with them. They saw families of ducks and pileated woodpeckers along the trail.
In Wood Park near the lunch hour the Lions Club offered hot dogs, hamburgers and cold drinks, and the Community Alliance Church offered a large variety of delicious homemade desserts, served warm, thanks to the powers of a microwave. HAYC3 had a Wood Park Welcome Station that offered hot chocolate to take the chill off. There was a bouncy bounce to keep the kids moving and warm.
The big and most fun event was the Bedrun. Three teams participated. One bed was steerable and included a night stand with an alarm clock, candle and book; one had chickens on it, and the third was very low to the ground. The Kiwanis team was first, Mountain View was second and Immaculate Conception Church third. Rumor has it, folks are already signing up for next year’s contest!
The afternoon consisted of ice skating, geo-caching and horse and carriage rides offered by Saratoga Horse and Carriage.
The Police Dept. defeated the Fire Dept. in volleyball at St. Mary’s Academy. A mother and son attended the Zumba class at the Youth Center, and a group of youngsters tried their hand at baton twirling at the Municipal Building. Several people attended the Open House at the John St. Gallery, and at 5 pm the day wrapped up with Blizzard Pancakes at St. Mark’s Church.
The day was a wonderful success in that it provided fun activities for every age group. The best part was that the mason jars at each event were filled to the brim with money to benefit the HACA Food Closet. HAYC3 Director Aelish Nealon said not all the results are in yet, but so far Hoosipalooza raised over $2,000 to help stock the Food Closet shelves.
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