Town of DeWitt celebrates 50th annual Canal Day with carnival games, live music and commemorative plaque
By Lauren Young
Staff Writer
The Town of DeWitt’s longest-running event made its return this year on Aug. 4 with the 50th annual Canal Day, held at the DeWitt Town Hall and Ryder Park at 5400 Butternut Drive.
Starting at 3 p.m., the monumental event included activities like an inflatable midway, rides, face painting, a bounce house, a roving juggler, a Tumble Bus and carnival games. Jeff the Magic Man also made his return this year with the unveiling of the “biggest balloon build ever.”
While the town celebrated 50 years of the event, the town recreation supervisor and staff have organized much more than that — 90 Canal Days total, to be exact.
“On a personal note, I’ve been coming to Canal Day since I was a little kid, and now it’s really exciting for me to be part of the planning and the implementation of such a wonderful event that reaches to so many members of our community,” said Megan Ball, the recreation supervisor for the Town of DeWitt.
A presentation was additionally held later that day, followed by the introduction of a new plaque commemorating the milestone to be displayed at the town hall.
Supervisor Ed Michalenko thanked all the supporters that helped make Canal Day run as successfully as it has for so long and introduced a plaque to be displayed at the town hall, which reads, “The Town of DeWitt Parks and Recreation Department celebrating 50 years of Canal Day in the Town of DeWitt, 1968-2018.”
“Let’s hope for another 50 years,” said Michalenko.
“We had a great turnout today, it’s been beautiful all day,” said Dennis Payne from the DeWitt Advisory Conservation Commission (DACC), as he operated the DACC information tent during the day. DeWitt town councilor Joe Chairenza seconded that sentiment, saying that the event garnered a great turnout this year with beautiful weather to accompany it.
Other family-friendly activities of the day featured educational sessions with live birds of prey by Page Wildlife Center, crafter demonstrations, Erie Canal historical information, informational displays by the DeWitt Police Department, the DeWitt and East Syracuse Fire Departments, EAVES, the Community Library of DeWitt & Jamesville and other community organizations such as Helping Hounds and CodFISH.
Evening festivities began at 6:30 p.m. with live music from Canal Day favorite band “Timeline” and a fireworks display at 9:15 p.m.
Canal Day was sponsored by the DeWitt Advisory Conservation Commission, Catania Orthodontics, Kumon of DeWitt, Michael Grimm Services, Burghardt’s Auto Service, the Rotary Club of DeWitt, B&B Lumber, Romano Toyota, L.L. Bean, National Grid, Wegmans and K&A Services.
