Lanesborough Fire Holding Block Dance With Whiskey City
 The Fire Association holds fundraisers to help maintain the fire station. |
LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — The Fire Association is hoping to grow its annual block dance with the help of some local favorites.
The fourth annual block dance is returning to Bill Laston Park on Saturday with music by Whiskey City and food by the Old Forge, On a Roll and Riga-Bello's Fried Dough. The association also will be selling beer and wine.
The event starts at 6 p.m. with the band expected to begin around 8.
"This year, we decided to change it up a bit by having Whiskey City to appeal more to the local crowd," Steve Michalak, vice president of the Fire Association, said. "This is growing. It is a growing event."
The fire company began the block dance four years ago at the station. It outgrew the fire house and the dance was recently moved to park.
The fundraiser was headed by some firefighters looking to find additional ways to raise money. The association typically holds pancake breakfasts and beer and wine tasting. In the first couple years of the block dance, the group "basically broke even," according to Treasurer Peter Pannesco.
The dance is eyed to become one of the biggest fundraisers for the association, which uses the money to maintain the firehouse. While the town owns the equipment, the association is responsible for the building.
"It makes it so that we're not at town meeting every year with our hands out," said Pannesco on Wednesday. "There is always something to be done."
The group has made changes to the dance party over the years in hopes of attracting more and more people. Members have gotten better at managing the event and last year grossed about $400 in profit.
"We're growing slow so we can still manage it," Michalak said.
The admission fee is $10 and the association will be holding a 50/50 raffle. Michalak said they want to keep the ticket prices reasonable while still being able to cover the costs of putting on the event — such as renting tents and getting permits.
Michalak said already there has been tremendous response from adding more vendors and Whiskey City; he expects attendance to be nearly double that of last year. A group of 10 plan the event, while on Saturday, the entire association will be on hand managing it.
"It's a lot of work," he said. "We need all 40 members to come together for this ... All 40 members pitch in to help."
The block party is considered a modernization of the fireman's ball the association put on more than 15 years ago. The association stopped holding the ball because managing alcohol consumption and the crowds meant carrying too much liability.
"We're trying to revive it under a different name," said Pannesco.
Four years ago, Michalak and Jeff DuChaine thought up the block dance, piggy-backing off fundraisers other departments have put on.
"We just wanted to have a fun event," Michalak said.
Tags: dance, fire department, fundraiser,
