Sheldrake Spring Festival 2008 Has Center Ready for Next Year

by Janet Beal

Festival attendees enjoyed the water and the weather on May 4.

(May 22, 2008) The Sheldrake Environmental Center was assessing this week what went right at its 2008 Spring Festival on May 4 and what could go even better next year.

“We were really, really happy that the event occurred at all – what with the weather prediction and the parking situation and all of the conflicts with the many events going on in Larchmont,” said Amy Bisignani, the scheduling coordinator at the center.

“For next year, we think the parking situation has been resolved,” said Ms. Bisignani, commenting on the success of a new shuttle bus plan. The center is also prepared in case next year’s weather is uncooperative. “We now have a layout and canopies that will allow us to have the festival even if it pours,” said Ms. Bisignani. “We will also continue trying to coordinate with the other community groups to pick a date that isn’t so crowded.”

Children and adults studied creatures living in pond water.

“We still had our 600 people and it went very well,” said Ms. Bisignani. The crowd enjoyed nature-centered activities, music, refreshments, and, despite the weather report predicting thunderstorms, sunny beautiful weather. The festival combined hands-on environmental education with opportunities to explore the Larchmont Reservoir - James G. Johnson, Jr. Nature Conservancy, which houses the Sheldrake Center.

There were traditional activities, such as children’s arts and crafts and face painting, pond study and family scavenger hunts led by Sheldrake volunteer environmental educators, music from the Larchmont Music Academy, a raffle, and a demonstration of Ikebana flower-arranging conducted by Shoko Iwata, Vivien Huang and Kazuko Moriwaki. New Canaan Nature Center was back, this time, with Native American Storytelling, featuring live animals, artifacts and pictures to illustrate the tales. Will Doorley and Chris Xifaras served free ice cream from their “Super Frosty” truck. Volunteers from the Sheldrake Gardens commemorated their 20th season of growing produce for the Larchmont-Mamaroneck Food Pantry and several community residences by giving out marigold, cornflower, bean and zinnia seedlings.

New to the festival were Westchester County’s “Veggie Van” and the Town of Mamaroneck’s vegetable oil-powered garbage truck, which promote technologies that reduce greenhouse gases and require less dependency on foreign oil. On display were sculptures From Earth & Fire by local artists Jackie Lorieo, Janet Castronuovo and Joseph Castronuovo. Mr. Castronuovo also demonstrated wood-turning, using his lathe to produce spinning tops for visiting children. Town Conservation Director Elizabeth Paul provided information on the nearly-completed Westchester County Colonial Greenway Trail, a 14.5-mile unpaved trail loop connecting five Southern Westchester municipalities.

Organizing the festival, always a major enterprise, required extra cooperation and ingenuity this year to solve a perennial problem of dangerous congestion along Bonnie Way, where festival parking tends to obstruct entry of emergency vehicles. Sheldrake Environmental Center, the Town of Mamaroneck, the Village of Larchmont and Bonnie Briar Country Club created a traffic-management plan that insured the safety of nearby residents and Festival guests. The Town of Mamaroneck and Village of Larchmont provided two buses that usually serve the Larchmont Senior Center to move pedestrians from farther-afield parking. Kevin Burke, Manager of Bonnie Briar Country Club, generously donated the club’s poolside parking lot as a safe parking alternative. Sheldrake board members guided guests in parking, drop-off, and bus-loading zones.

“What started as problem-solving yielded a truly creative plan that actually enhanced the festival experience for many guests,” noted Sheldrake’s executive director, Marie Venezia. “At a time when it’s easy for people to settle for complaining, it is wonderful to know we live in communities who take residents’ concerns seriously and put cooperative effort into making things better.”

Other assistance for the festival came from Sheldrake members and friends, as well as young people from the Hommocks School Service Club, Pelham High School and local scout groups. The volunteers, who were easily identified by their yellow Sheldrake t-shirts, helped with everything from pre-festival coordination, setting up signs and tables, assisting children with crafts, face painting, selling raffle tickets, greeting and signing in visitors, serving refreshments, taking event photographs. On top of all that, they helped with cleaning up after the event to return the conservancy to the pristine conditions the local scouts ensured prior to the celebration.

Janet Beal is a member of the Sheldrake Board.

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