Cosmic Carnival Cometh to East Hampton

An anticipated annual event, Old Home Days, arrives this week in East Hampton.

The festive air during the 33rd annual celebration, to be held Thursday through Saturday on the Center School grounds, is certainly contagious. Old Home Days President Jim Vick books all the entertainment, which means he has to go and see each band before he signs them up.

“The music is what brings the carnival to center stage, no pun intended," Vick said. "What I think is the best part of the weekend is the sense of community. I have never seen an arrest; everybody is being polite, having fun and taking care of each other."

In addition to live entertainment, there will be a parade, 5K road race, raffles/giveaways and a wide array of booths (food, merchandise, information, etc.).

For the last three or four years, Art Marsden, with the help of Lynda Krasnitaki, has been the solicitor for the bicycles and helmets that are given out each night during the festival. This year they will give away 60 bicycles, with helmets, 20 a night.

Marsden got involved when he went to a meeting and said, “I am here expressly for the bicycle giveaway. I want to do that.”

The fun part of the bicycle giveaway each night is watching the children, filled with anticipation, sitting in front of the stage with wide eyes saying, “Call my number. Call my number.” Then when the announcer calls their number, they get to look at all the bicycles and choose the one they want.

There also will be 12 items raffled off, including a 21hp Hasqvarna riding mower, a gas grill, Yankees tickets, gift cards ranging from $500 to $100 and more. Raffle tickets are $10 and only 1,000 will be sold. Tickets can be purchased at: Ace Hardware, 25 E. High St.; East Hampton Public Library; Fit Trix, 84 E. High St.; Food Bag Citgo, 32 E. High St.; Salon Ferrara, 40 W. High St.; and Verizon Wireless, 11 E. High St.

It seems like the whole town turns out for the parade on Saturday, waiting to see how everybody interpreted the year’s theme, which this year is Cosmic Carnival. The Old Home Days Committee suggests, “Think outer space, New Orleans Mardi Gras or Rio’s Carnival, far out 1960 hippies, or add your own inventive twist to the mix. Bring forward your creativity and your participation in a Glorious Celebration shared by all.”

“We keep the prices for the soda and the rides down because we are not trying to make a lot of money. We just have to pay for next year’s event,” Vick said.

For the soda, attendees can buy a large plastic cup for two dollars and refill it all weekend. For the carnival, $15 wristbands can be purchased.

I am sure the Old Home Days Committee would appreciate it if other residents walked into a meeting such as Marsden did and take on a project. A three-day event like Old Home Days is a tremendous amount of work for the committee and they need more volunteers. As you enjoy all the great activities this year, give a thought to volunteering for next year’s event. They start the planning as soon as this year’s Old Home Days is over.

For more information and the schedule for the three days, view the attached pdfs or visit easthamptonoldhomedays.blogspot.com.