In The NewsBall Drops On A Gallant Effort
Originally printed in The Westerly Sun
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Westerly Sun CommentaryIt was with equal measures of disappointment and understanding that we greeted the news that First Night Westerly likely will not be happening this year.
Ray Jones, chairman of the five-member Board of Directors of First Night Westerly, made the announcement last week. Jones is also pastor of Lighthouse Community Baptist Church in Pawcatuck. He took on the task of organizing First Night when the event's originator, Westerly Substance Task Force, decided it could no longer handle the task.
Jones and his board exited the event with class and style. They made it known early in the year in an effort to let businesses and organizations rededicate monetary or personnel resources to another cause. He thanked all who had supported the event and made sure to give Mary Lou Serra of the Substance Abuse Task force special recognition for taking the initiative to start the event.
In concept - and for many of the 13 years the event ran in Westerly - First Night offers a great night of family entertainment and community spirit. But as Jones noted, to do it well takes a great deal of money and more than just dedicated volunteers. Westerly offers so much to residents of this region - the Virtu Art Festival, Pops Concert, Solstice Parade, River Glow, Misquamicut Music Festival, Shakespeare in the Park, the Granite Theater, Santa's arrival, Twelfth Night and so many more events. This schedule is on a par with those offered by much larger communities and is certainly one that many new residents undoubtedly find surprising for such a small town to offer.
Atown our size can't really afford a paid staff for something like First Night, and without volunteers and organizations such as the Chorus of Westerly and the Chamber of Commerce most of these offerings would not exist. Small businesses can be stretched only so far when it comes to sponsorships and volunteerism.
And so we understand completely the board's decision to end the event - at least for now. Who knows what may happen when the economy improves, or who in this creative town may come up with another idea to take its place.
We are disappointed to see it go, but Jones and his supporters and Serra and her supporters are to be commended for all they did to make it happen for those 13 years.