The Holliston Lions’ 55th Annual Summer Carnival will grace the grounds of Holliston High School during the same month Lions Club International celebrates its Centennial. Carnival Week will take place July 26-29, with another Fireworks Night scheduled for Saturday evening to conclude the festivities.
“This is an all-hand-on-deck event,” says Lions Carnival Chairman and incoming President, Ged Gove. “It’s probably the event that involves the most Holliston Lions we have.” The Holliston Lions Club currently numbers about 75 members. Of those, 60 or so will work the event, from selling tickets to manning the food tent.
The Carnival will be held all four days with the Midway featuring Mark Fanelli’s Traveling Amusement Park Inc. Special wristband nights on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday will offer unlimited ride options.
“On the opening night, Wednesday, July 26th, for the entire time that night, we’re having an all-ride wristband night from $25, and you can ride rides at the carnival all night long unlimited,” says Gove. “The second promotion is on Friday night the 28th, from 9 p.m. – 11 p.m., again, unlimited rides and you get a wristband for 15 dollars. The last special promotion is on Saturday afternoon, July 29, from 1-5 p.m., with an unlimited ride wristband for $25.”
The Holliston Lions food tent will again offer hot dogs, hamburgers, nachos, chili, chili dogs, peppers and onions from the Holliston Superette, fries, chicken nuggets, drinks and candy, all cooked and served by Holliston lions.
“Plans behind our 55th annual Carnival are coming together nicely,” explains Lions Carnival Chairman and incoming President, Ged Gove. “This event not only means a lot of fun and entertainment in our community, but the proceeds help drive the more than $50,000 a year that our Holliston Lions Club gives to local community groups, high school scholarships, charity organizations and initiatives, and of course, our annual Club donation dedicated to Lions International Eye Research,” Gove said.
The Holliston Lions Club is no spring chicken itself.
“The Lions Club in Holliston was started in 1941, so this is our 76th year,” says Gove. The annual carnival is the club’s oldest running fundraiser, and it helps fund projects for the community, community causes such as The Holliston Pantry Shelf and The Holliston Rail Trail, as well as Lions Club charities. The money also helps fund scholarships for Holliston students. Gove says that this year, the Holliston Lions awarded 14 scholarships to graduating seniors.
Atlas Fireworks will again be featuring the Carnival’s Fireworks Night scheduled to start at 9:30 Saturday evening, July 29th. “Weather permitting, it has recently helped us celebrate successful Carnival Weeks,” Gove added. “It’s tradition to come out to the Lions Carnival, help celebrate the summer with us and know it all goes to a good cause.”
Tradition takes center stage this year, the 100th year of the Lions Club. “For part of our Centennial year, we installed a granite bench on the rail trail,” says Gove, who’s been a Holliston Lion for eight years. Another project the Holliston Lions is working on as part of the Lions’ 100th anniversary is the renovating of the barn up at the Holliston Community Farm.
“We’re working on and helping to provide money for that, and that’s taking place within the next couple of months,” Gove said, in mid-June.
Since the Lions Club began in Chicago, IL, the annual convention for its Centennial will take place in Chicago, starting June 30th to July 4th, 2017.
“Lions all over the world will be convening in Chicago to commemorate the 100th anniversary,” says Gove. That includes four Lions from Holliston, including Andy Porter (District Governor for the region) and Amy Porter, as well as Tom Merritt and Doreen Martel.
Gove notes that the Lions Club International Convention will take place in Boston in a few years, 2023, something that is quite an honor for a region.
Issue Date:
July, 2017
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