In case you haven't looked at the calendar much, and haven't done the arithmetic, we are fast approaching the centennial of Maytown's biggest party, 1910's Old Home Week, the celebration of our village's founding in 1760.

You may recall that another town birthday, the 225th, proved to be the motivating force behind the creation of the Maytown Historical Society. In 1985, our one-year-old society "pulled out all the stops" with a big parade, a large stage on the town square, visiting dignitaries, like the descendents of Simon Cameron and the assistant to the British ambassador, a German band, and orations by lots of local politicians.

It was a great event, back in 1985, but having studied and put together a museum exhibit on Old Home Week of 1910, it is clear to me that it paled in comparison to all the hoopla of the past.

In 1910, nearly EVERYONE in town (all 800 of us) played a part in organizing, carrying out, and attending the party---as if it were their own---because it was!!! Wouldn't that be great (and a real challenge) to us, the Maytown of 2010, to be similarly involved---and to defy the common wisdom (and , sad to say, all too frequent experience) that people today don't care about community anymore---or that all today's people care about is making money (in places usually far distant from Maytown), getting their kids involved in organized sports, and having their "off " time completely to themselves.

Maybe having an Old Home Week again might be just the thing to help Maytonians get to know their neighbors, get to know (and prize) their history, and cause us to work together for the common good and enrichment of our community.

What do you think?

Towards the end of 2007, or start of 2008, some of us, at the MHS, will try and get the "ball" rolling, by approaching many other groups and individuals in Maytown, to see if they are interested in helping to make the big "family reunion" possible. (Of course, you can express your own support and willingess to help, dear reader, at any time.)

Concrete plans can, of course, not be finalized until a steering committee is in place to represent the wide variety of persons and groups that make up our town, but I suspect there will be an abundance of jobs that will need to be done. A short list of them might be:

1. To compile a list of the names of all known living former residents of town and to invite them to the affair via a special mailing.
   
   
2. To survey the community to see what housing might be available ---including not only commercial hotels, motels, and B&B's, but private homes---and to forward that information to respondents who have indicated their intention to attend.
   
   
3. To open an event bank account and handle the reception and disbursement of income---also to secure financial backers.
   
   
4. To plan a program, which might include a week-long succession of varied activities---including parades, picnics, games, dances, church services, concerts, exhibits, open houses, speeches, plays, etc. etc. etc.
   
   
5. To handle the creation and sale of souvenirs in the form of both "gift"-type items and printed matter---including, perhaps, a new and comprehensive history of the town.
   
   
6. To decorate the town.
   
   
7. To leave some lasting material remembrance of the event. (In 1910, it was the pump and the square's central island.)
   
   
8. To handle publicity for the event in all sorts of media.
   
   
9. To invite celebrities in various walks of life.
   
   
10. To handle transportation and road closure issues.
    
    
11. To provide for emergency medical services.
    
    
12. To provide for crowd control, traffic control, and information/hospitality services.
    
    
13. To encourage the writing of songs, poems, dramas, and other musical or literary offerings, as well as art and sculptural works that tell Maytown's story and celebrate her past.
    
    
14. To complete the restoration of the museum building and provide for a suitable exhibition therein.
    
    
15. To amass artifacts still in private hands, for a grand exhibition of Maytoniana---possibly at Maytown School, as in 1910.
    
    
16. To produce a video on town history and on the celebration, itself, and to thoroughly record everything that happens.
    
    

I know that's a heap of work---but it should also be a heap of fun---and a powerful tool in community-building that attendees will remember all their lives. So if you're willing to help , talk to me sooner rather than later, and we'll see if we can't move that mountain of apathy that always delights in trying to frustrate dreams.

Are you ready for 2010?