Rockets Red Glare Over The People of Montclair!

Montclair’s Independence Day celebration kicked off last night with the fireworks display that wasn’t supposed to happen this year. It was a proud Montclair moment as Montclair resident Timothy Barr stood in the infield of the stadium named after Montclair’s Yogi Berra on Montclair State University’s campus and welcomed the standing room only crowd  to the community’s 60th annual July 4th fireworks display. Despite a cold, and sometimes stinging, reality of an austere budgetary year, the Montclair community had a blast on a hot summer night through their perserverance, ingenuity, togetherness, pragmatism and patriotism. To lay the groundwork for next year’s celebration, Montclair Councilors Kathryn Weller-Demming and Renee Baskerville sold American flags with Tim Barr at the stadium’s entrance to raise funds for July 4th 2011. Sure, there was a traffic jam on the way home. But it didn’t diminish the pride of Montclair on the proudest day in the USA.

Kings’ Windows Display Montclair Generosity

June 28, 2010

The evidence is clear at the Upper Montclair Kings Supermarket on Valley Road. Montclair shoppers have been opting to donate to the community’s Independence Day celebration at the check-out counters. Thanks to Eileen Sheehan, who closed this deal – among many others – to make this fundrasing opportunity happen. Township officials say donations at Kings have topped $1,000! But that isn’t the only fundraising that has been going on in recent days. Under the leadership of Michael D. Byrne, American flag sales in the township by local Boys Scouts of America troops raised nearly $500 over the weekend. Meanwhile, local businesses and organizations, including the Montclair Community Pre-K, continue to come in – ensuring an exciting Indeoendence Day celebration is on tap for this weeekend! Thank you, Montclair!

June 15, 2010

Celebration saved!

The Montclair Township Council on Tuesday adopted two resolutions finalizing the decision to have a July 4th fireworks display at Yogi Berra Stadium on the campus of Montclair State University.  The vote was 6-0, with Councilwoman Renee Baskerville absent from the meeting.

At this point – thanks to private donations, creative fundraising ideas, contributions by talented residents, the pragmatism of the township’s elected and non-elected officials, and the many people who took an online history quiz – Montclair’s Independence Day celebration has been saved!

It will be different from those of previous years. But then again, so is the entire Montclair community.

One thing that has remained a constant in our proud community is the ability to come together. We showed in flying colors – red, white, and blue – in saving the celebration.

It just goes to show you that when the going gets tough, the tough, the creative, the talented, the kind-hearted and the generous of Montclair get together – and get the job done.

So what do we do now? Keep going!

The Township Council’s adoption of the two resolutions starts the clock ticking down to next year’s celebration. Stay tuned for information about upcoming fundraising efforts.

Amanti Vino fundraiser nets $3,500 for Independence Day

UPDATED on 6/19/10: Sharon Sevrens checked in today to let us know that her donation of 15 percent of all wine sales at Thursday night’s event brought in an additional $311.64, making for a total of $3,811.64 raised at the event. Thank you everybody!

On the heels of the Montclair, N.J. community netting $10,000 in Liberty Mutual’s national contest yesterday, Amanti Vino hosted a stunning fundraiser Thursday night that raised $3,500 for saving the township’s Independence Day celebration. A huge thank you to Amanti Vino owner Sharon Sevrens for her donations and presentations of five wonderful wines – most notably, an amazing port she poured at the end of the evening, a 30-year-old white port called Casa de Santa Eufemia (ask for it by name!)

Sharon Sevrens

The majority of the 26 people in attendance swore they didn’t like port. After a few sips, the same crowd bought out her inventory of the dessert wine.

Many thanks to the good people at 32 Church who donated a savory mushroom-pasta course, followed by their own special quesadilla, and finished with a satisfying tiramisu.

Most especially, our thanks go to the generous folks who came to the event and who helped us comfortably surpass our fundraising goal of $3,000 for the night. The final tally has yet to be calculated  – Sharon is donating a portion of her wine sales from last night – but our early estimate is $3,500.

Look for updates and photos to this post later in the day!

Liberty Mutual to Montclair: You won!

If this post is news to you, then you didn’t take Liberty Mutual’s Bring Back the Fourth quiz. For those of us who did take the quiz, this is old news and a chance for us to do an on-line high five to one another. Congratulations, us! We just took a $10,000 leap forward toward saving the celebration!

Few spaces remain for Amanti Vino/32 Church fundraiser

There are just a handful of spaces that remain for the Amanti Vino/32 Church fundraiser tomorrow night. Call Amanti Vino to make your reservation! 973-509-WINE (9463).

Kings’ windows clearly display our progress

Take a look through the front window at Kings on Valley Road and you’ll find it’s not so easy to see through! Shoppers who who made donations to Save The Celebration of Independence Day in Montclair are obstructing the view with their booster cards. Each card bears a donor’s name. Is your name on the window of fame? Stop by Kings on your next grocery errand and the tell the cashier you want to make a donation to Save The Celebration.

Check Out What’s At The Kings Supermarket Check Out!

What can you get at the Upper Montclair Kings Supermarket that you can’t get anywhere else? A chance to donate $4 to save the Montclair Independence Day Celebration. Thanks to the sponsorship seeking efforts of the Township of Montclair’s Eileen Sheehan and the creative abilities of Tom Drymalski and Kristina Banzon Drymalski, Kings shoppers are now seeing striking flyers at the check out counters announcing the opportunity to make a donation. Cashiers are asking customers if they’d like to donate $4 for the fourth. (I know. The parade and picnic will be on the 5th of July this year. But this way, cashiers get to say a catchy phrase. “Would you like to donate $4 for the Fourth?”)

Big spender that I am, I donated $8 – that’s $4 for each daughter who was tagging along with me today. The cashier handed us “I helped save the celebration” booster cards.  All booster cards will be displayed in the store so we can see who is helping Save The Celebration!!

So whether it’s weekend shopping or that mid-week gallon of milk, let’s make our way to Kings Supermarket on Valley Road in Upper Montclair!

Amanti Vino/32 Church to host STC fundraiser

Amanti Vino  has announced today it has partnered with their next-door neighbor, 32 Church, to host a special wine-tasting and food sampling fund raiser.

The event is scheduled for Thursday, June 17, from 7:30 to 9 p.m. at Amanti Vino. Tickets are $100 per person with 100 percent of the proceeds going directly toward saving Montclair’s Independence Day celebration. Space is limited. Only 30 tickets will be sold!

These amazingly generous proprietors will be donating all food and wine for the event. In addition, Amanti Vino will donate up to 15 percent of all proceeds from wine sales made that evening. To reserve your spot, call (973) 509-WINE (9463).

So, how’s it been going?

That’s been one of the FAQ’s we’ve been hearing from friends for the past few days since we launched SaveTheCelebration.Org.

During the past week, our humble little SaveTheCelebration.Org blog has 497 visitors. That’s in addition to the 125 visitors it had the week before. The STC Facebook page had more than 300 visitors last week.  Our Twitter account could use some followers. There are seven so far – including myself, my wife and Michael Byrne, who is very much an insider in the effort to save Montclair’s 4th of July/Independence Day celebration.

In terms of dollars, this effort has raised $200, according to Pat Brechka, the township’s director of Recreation and Cultural Affairs. We urge everyone that has had the inclination to make a donation to write a check, drop it in a stamped  envelope and send it to the address to the right of this post (as 20th Century as it may be.)

On the flip side, another FAQ we’ve been hearing is “How can I help?” That is very encouraging and gives us reason to believe the best is yet to come.  Last week, we raised awareness. Hopefully, we’ll raise action next.

Remember, it’s not only how much we raise, but when we raise it!