Blackstone Valley Chamber Expo returns with a flourish
Daniel Crossin, Kenneth Lewis and Stacey Stanovich were on hand to welcome visitors to the Homefield Credit Union booth at the BV Chamber’s 22nd annual Home & Community Expo. Mr. Crossin is vice president of secondary market and mortgage operations, Mr. Lewis is an assistant vice president, market manager and Ms. Stanovich senior universal banker for Homefield. Mr. Crossin is also a former president of the Chamber’s Board of Directors.
By Rod Lee
The five words that summed up how people were feeling at the Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce’s 22nd annual Home & Community Expo in the fieldhouse of Northbridge High School on March 12th was “it’s good to be back!”
Koopman Lumber was on hand with seasonal products.
The mood for the event was buoyant. The crowds, long a staple, were back. The Expo was on again, after a two-year hiatus caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
“The (NHS) parking lot is full,” the operator of a shuttle bus explained as he chauffeured attendees back and forth from the Whitinsville Christian School several blocks away.
Not even a cold rain that made for a miserable morning could dampen the spirits of the hundreds who showed up to check out an assortment of vendor booths. Free goodies, a Chowder Festival, an expanded children’s zone featuring Bobo the Clown and food available for purchase at the NHS DECA concession stand were part of a celebratory atmosphere.
Handouts were plentiful.
“We’re giving away two $50 gift certificates to Galliford’s (Restaurant & Tavern) and one family four-pack to Southwick’s Zoo, Sarah D’Alessandro said, as she and Bryan Spencer greeted people stopping by. Told by one person that “I’ve already won a gift card, we were at Galliford’s for dinner during Mardi Gras last Saturday night and my name was drawn,” Ms. Spencer said “enter this raffle anyway! You might win again!”
Pauline Tranter, a volunteer at the Asa Waters Mansion in Millbury, was beaming, and for good reason.
The historic home in Millbury Center is flourishing, she said.
“Last summer we were booked solid every weekend with brides and it will be a busy summer again,” Ms. Tranter said. She has been assisting at the home for fifteen years.
Pauline Tranter has been a volunteer with the Asa Waters Mansion in Millbury for fifteen years and says the historic home is looking forward to a busy summer with weddings and concerts.
Completed in 1829, the Asa Waters Mansion has seen such notables as Henry Clay, Abby Kelley Foster, Alexander Graham Bell, Frederick Douglass, Daniel Webster and Horace Greeley make appearances. Facing demolition, the mansion has been saved by the Asa Waters Task Force and Friends of the Asa Waters Mansion. It is still utilized as an entertainment center for concerts, weddings, classes, tours and lectures.
“We have a lot of events coming up, some of them in our big tent, which seats three hundred people,” Ms. Tranter said.
These include such spring offerings as a “Yours for Humanity-Abby” play and Anti-Slavery Fair on May 15, a show featuring internationally known psychic medium Gary McKinstry on May 20 and a lecture—“Into the Garden: Seed Propogation”—on June 15.
UniBank, Milford Federal Credit Union, Gaudette Insurance, Savers Bank, Millbury Federal Credit Union, Package Steel and Lampin Corporation all took on sponsorship roles.
“This is the Republican corner,” Joe McKenna said, as he and fellow state legislators David Muradian Jr. and Mike Soter enjoyed their spot in the center of the action. But Rep. Soter did find time to have a cup of chowder with State Sen. Michael Moore, a Democrat.
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Contact Rod Lee at
774-232-2999.
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