Town Party Hosts Green Scene
by Edd Merritt

From what began as a used-book sale by the Charlotte Library 14 years ago, the Charlotte Town Party has grown into an annual July event, replete with tractor and bicycle parades, kids bouncing in a firedog pen, friendly pugs nuzzling up to whomever pays attention, pole vaults and politicians.
And, oh, yes, the book sale endures.
Saturday was no exception. The weather could not have been more cooperative as well over 1,000 people flocked through West Charlotte Center, chatting with friends and tasting treats from the town’s Fire & Rescue Auxiliary. The tents on the green and fire engine bays across the street provided comfortable refuge from the direct mid-summer sun.
As usual, many of the patrons headed directly for the book sale, often finding their dream tales in the reams of books ready for consumption on the tables. A library volunteer caught consolidating displays near the end of the day said business had been “brisk all along.” With foresight gained through years of experience, the booksellers provided buyers with boxes and carts to transport their treasures to cars parked throughout the village center.
Kurt Fischer’s pole vaulting in the parking lot behind Fire & Rescue has become an event that always draws a curious audience as well as avid participants. Young and old alike seem to revel in flinging themselves upward, hoping that the landing pad is still inflated when they arrive back to earth.
Tunes from the library porch by Xander Naylor and his bassist Willy Lamb-Orgel, and later by Rick Cusick, provided a musical background to the occasion. Youngsters tripping through the grass to the guitars were common sights, as were parents on blankets camped under the few shade trees on the green.
Members of the Quinlan School restoration group took advantage of the occasion to display the school’s history. Two gentlemen who had attended Quinlan were on hand to share memories. Obviously chosen for their variety of opinions about school days, one said he liked sitting in class, getting to know the 12 to 15 students at the school. The other, whose reflection may have, in fact, been more common, said he couldn’t wait to get out of school each day and back to the hay and corn fields on the home farm.
The Charlotte Children’s Center supplemented the used-book sales with its own pre-owned items, mostly clothing and toys.
Many Charlotte organizations displayed literature on tables under a long tent on the post office side of the green. The Conservation Commission’s poster asked passers by to “Name that Tree” from a picture of its leaf. The Grange and others tried the food ploy, tempting the audience with treats. Grange member Heather Manning said years of experience had proven that sweets were an effective enticement to their table.
The Food Shelf and Charlotte college student Kendall Frost collected rather than sold items. Frost gathered a variety of footwear to be refreshed and passed on to those who need it, while the Food Shelf also took in items to be distributed to others.
From Hands to Honduras, the Second Vermont Republic, and Connecting Youth mentoring group at the north end of the tent, through tables featuring pug rescue, co-housing, Vermont Democrats, the Charlotte Congregational Church and Green Mountain Habitat for Humanity along the line to the south end’s Charlotte Land Trust, Trails Committee, Historical Association and Lewis Creek Association, the Town Party served as a medium for an impressive variety of causes that are active in this relatively small community.
By 2 p.m. most books had been sold--leftovers went for distribution elsewhere – and another successful Town Party, an enjoyable benefit of living in our community, came to a close. Most agreed it’s a feature that enriches our lives.