Amelia Day is here!
By Jeannette
Porter
Saturday morning at 9:30 a.m., it all comes down to this -
more fun than you can shake a stick at.
Amelia Day is here. Saturday (May 12) at 9:30 on the
Courthouse Square, the craft vendors will be there. The Amelia businesses will
be there. The food vendors will be there. The not-for-profit services will be
there. And everybody hopes you will be there!
If you want to strategize your approach, the map of the
square and the listing of all the vendors are in a full-page ad on page 13 of
this week's The Monitor. That same map and listing will be available as a
program from the Amelia Day information table next to the stage.
You might prefer a more relaxed approach, just sort of
wandering around as your fancy takes you. Either way, half the fun of Amelia Day
is seeing all the folks you haven't seen since last Amelia Day. Everybody who's
anybody (and that's everybody) makes an appearance.
As of this writing the weather forecast is positively
delightful. (I hope I haven't jinxed it!) You can get started on your summer
tan, eat fun food, pick up something for your mom, and renew an acquaintance,
all at one time. How's that for multi-tasking?
I hope some folks will take a little time out of Amelia Day
to give blood. Summer is a time of peak demand for blood, what with summer
travel, kids out of school and accidents. Nobody's called me yet, and Girl Scout
Troop 768 is counting on us. Please call me at 804-561-6444 to make an
appointment, or just show up at the Blood-mobile on the day. The Bloodmobile
will be there from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. It doesn't take long, you get that neat
sticker, and you really could save a life.
We have the bittersweet privilege of being Amelia County High
School's Air Force Jr. ROTC's last public flag ceremony. As The Monitor has
previously reported, the program is being discontinued because of lack of Air
Force funding. Promptly at 9:30 a.m. the cadets will present arms and raise the
flag for us. They've always been here for us -- please come out in their honor.
Rev. Patricia Kellam of Christ Episcopal and Rev. Ed Walls of
Amelia Church of God by Faith will lead us in the Lord's Prayer after Angie
Anderson sings the National Anthem, and Board of Supervisors Chairman Frank
Harris will bring official greetings from the board and County Administrator
Taylor Harvie (who will be at his son Carter's graduation from Virginia Tech).
Of course you know by this time that Joy's School of Dance,
the Amelia County Elementary School Chorus, the singers from Amelia Academy's
kindergarten and the Raider Rhythm Dancers (from the middle school) will be
performing in the morning. Naturally you will want to see Amelia's youth
perform, yes? And then stay for the rest of the lineup.
The Amelia Day Committee is really pleased to be presenting
the bands No Limits, Paladin and Girls' Night Out (GNO) to provide the
soundtrack for the afternoon. No Limits is a local band, so come out and support
your local talent!
Paladin will take the stage at about 2:30, fronted by local
son Steve Davis III. The six-piece band has guitar, drums, bass, keyboards,
horns and of course vocals. Their repertoire is a mix of Motown, Top 40,
Southern rock, classic rock and country.
"We try to mix it up to appeal to a diverse group," said Mr.
Davis. "That's our intent when we play. Last year we were on pretty late, but
the crowd that was there enjoyed us. We definitely hope to have a bigger crowd
this year."
Mr. Davis described the band as having "more than a century
of combined experience" in different musical genres. "A good time should be had
by all," he said.
This reporter was there for Paladin's whole set at last
year's Amelia Day and I highly recommend you plan to be there this year, no
matter what kind of music you like.
Following Paladin to the stage will be Girls' Night Out, or
GNO, as it's known to its fans. This Southside-based band consists of Susan
DePhillip on guitar and vocals, Iantha "Ant-I" Malbon on vocals and percussion
and Anthony "Wop" Mercadante on guitar and vocals. The three have performed all
over the region in bands such as Government Cheese, Kind Eye Project and Key
Lime Pie. The three are also currently in another band, Midnight Traffic Jam.
They perform adult contemporary covers of such artists as Tracy Chapman, Adele,
Ben Harper and the Grateful Dead, as well as being a great jam band. This should
be a nice close-out to the day, something to tap your toes to and hum on your
way home.
Throughout the day there will be face painting, rock wall
climbing, softball pitching and deputy dunking, plus a bounce house and the
Lions' car show. In short, we'll have a mix of old and new, and hopefully - you!
Food, crafts...fun
Amelia celebrates with a full day of entertainment
AMELIA SWINGS -- Despite
competition from another locality's event, the crowds were not diminished for
the 26th Amelia Day Festival held Saturday (May 7) in the courthouse square. The
entertainment included the Nottowa Swingers square dancers who drew first-time
volunteers, including Skylar Gough (far left), from the audience to teach them
the steps.
By Jeannette Porter
If you didn't stay till the end of Amelia Day, you missed a
red-hot band.
ROCKIN’ THE SQUARE - Paladin, fronted by Amelia native Steve Davis (on sax at left) closed out Amelia Day with two hours of rock, funk, R&B, blues and a little country. Other members of the band are from Powhatan, Blackstone, Richmond and Tappahannock. The crowd was thinning by then, but you would not have known it from the energy the band put into its performance.
Steve Davis' band Paladin played from 4 to 6 p.m., wrapping
up a great day of sun, food, entertainment and shopping. From the first beats of
James Brown's "I Feel Good," through blues, rock, R&B and country, to the last
saxophone wail of Gato Barbieri's "Europa" (which Mr. Davis described as "a
musical indulgence"), the six-member band rocked. Look for them around the
county in future.
GETTING STARTED -- Amelia County High School Jr. Air Force ROTC (left) presented the colors to start the day. Angela Anderson (right) sang the National Anthem.
Don't feel too bad if you missed them, though. There was
great stuff throughout the day, beginning with Amelia County High School Air
Force JROTC's raising the flag and
the anthem by Angie Anderson. It was spine-tingling to watch the flag rise on a
beautiful morning so soon after the heroism of our Navy SEALs in Pakistan, and
event MC Don Shreffler made note of the fact to enthusiastic cheers by the
crowd.
THE WHEELS ON THE ART GO ROUND AND ROUND? - Well, the art bus (left) stayed in one place at Amelia Day, showcasing Amelia County Elementary and Middle school student art. The third graders from Amelia County Elementary School (center) entertain the crowd, as well as the Amelia Academy Kindergarten students (right).
Amelia County Middle School joined the elementary school on
the Art Bus this year, and the elementary school choir and the Amelia Academy
Kindergarten students demonstrated all of our young people are talented, not to
mention cute.
YOUNG PERFORMER -- Young Christopher Bailey, accompanied by his father, Clyde, sang several bluegrass gospel songs. He then brought down the house with his own rap rendition of "Jesus Loves Me."
Speaking of cute, eight-year-old Christopher Bailey brought
down the house with a rap rendition of "Jesus Loves Me" at the close of his
bluegrass gospel set, with his dad Clyde in accompaniment.
SINGING -- Terri Jo Phillips and Missy France (left) and Joe Pollard (right) performed some gospel songs for the crowd.
Missy France and Terri Jo Phillips sang beautifully, and Joe
Pollard got toes tapping to gospel with a guitar accompaniment.
AMELIA-BASED BAND -- The Amelia-based band, Happy Hour, performed at lunch time.
The band Happy Hour got the crowd moving at lunch time, but
got cut short because previous acts had run long. I wouldn't be surprised if we
saw them back next year, for a longer set.
BOOT SCOOTIN' STYLE -- The Country Style Line Dancers of Virginia (left) and the Nottowa Swingers (right) perform at Amelia Day.
New this year were the Country Style Line Dancers of Virginia
and the Nottowa Swingers (square dancers, in case you didn't know), kicking
their heels up for the delight of the audience. (If I had known the "Boot
Scootin' Boogie" was that much fun, I would have tried it long ago. I've got a
pair of cowboy boots!)
JOY'S JEWELS -- Joy's School of Dance award-winning Sapphires Dance Troup (left), Rubies Dance Troop (center) and award-winning and graduating senior dancer Shannon Comerford entertained the crowd.
Joy's School of Dance turned in the expected excellent
performance, despite a few technical glitches with their music. Their acting
contingent was sidelined by a case of pinkeye, but JSOD grads Eimile Davis and
Shannon Comerford stepped in at the last minute with polished and vibrant
performances from their repertoire.
CHEERING AND PRAISING -- Amelia County Parks and Recreation's award-winning competition cheerleaders, the Amelia Starz (left), performed one of their routines. The Manassa Hill Baptist Church Praise Dancers performed several of their uplifting routines.
The Amelia Starz Cheerleaders did one of their prize-winning
routines, and the Manassa Hill Baptist Church Praise Dancers gave us a
crowd-pleasing performance to some thumping gospel.
'MM, MM, GOOD’ -- There were more food booths than last year, and some had to replenish supplies during the day. Pictured left is Amelia County Deputy Sgt. Will Jones, Amelia County High School SRO, downs a loaded Polish sausage after a stint in the dunking booth. He is not sharing with ACHS Principal John Rokenbrod, at right.
Off the stage, there was food, food, food. Not a good day to
be on a diet, is all I'm say-in'. Business was so good that several booths had
to re-supply throughout the day.
CAR SHOW WINNERS -- Winners in the car show sponsored by the Lions Club were: (not all winners were available for the picture) People's Choice Susan Swearingin ('55 Chevy 210), Kids' Choice Ken Adams ('95 Chevy Corvette), Best paint Bill and Karen Poole ('65 Ford Falcon Futura), Best Interior John Hutchinson ('66 Ford pickup), Best Engine Bob Adams ('93 Plymouth 'Cuda), Saturday Night Car Susan Swearingin, Best in Show Rev. Bob Greene ('30 Ford Model A Cabriolet), Lions' Choice Award Lydia Gentry ('53 Mercury Monterey). The Participants' Choice Awards were: Bill and Karen Poole, Lydia Gentry, Edward Watkins ('42 Chevy coupe), Steve Swearingin ('70 Chevy Monte Carlo), Hoyt Spradlin ('30 Ford Model A), Bill Hafford ('69 Chevy Camaro), Floyd Easter ('69 Dodge Superbee), Greg Casarotti ('64 Ford Falcon Futura), Brian and Lynn Chamberlin ('68 Chevy Camaro), David Thorton ('59 Chevy 2-door hardtop), Troy Carter ('72 Chevy Nova) and Edward Taylor ('56 Ford Club Sedan).
The Lions' car show had 32 entries and the mammogram-mobile had a full slate of appointments. I don't know if the Bloodmobile had a good response, but I know the Friends of the Library had good sales.
SHADY DEALS - During the morning much of Washington Street was in the shade, which made for comfortable strolling and browsing of the vendors.
Now that the event is
over, I can confess that the committee was a wee bit worried because we had
fewer crafters than usual. Once every seven years Amelia Day coincides with
Heart of Virginia, and that was this year. However, the crafters all reported
good business and the businesses said they got good leads.
Next year, we'll be back, better than ever. Plans are in the
works for handicapped parking, and lots of other good stuff. If you came this
year, thanks! If you didn't, mark your calendar: Saturday, May 12, 2012.
There are openings on the Amelia Day committee, by the way.
If you are interested in joining, let your supervisor know.
If you are a vendor of handmade crafts or an Amelia business owner and would like a space at the 2012 Festival,
please e-mail Penney Averette at penney02@tds.net, call her at (804) 337-0584 or Martha Clark at mgclark@tds.net or call her at (804) 561-3488.
If you are a non-profit or Amelia County food vendor and would like a space at the 2012 Festival,
please call Ginger Martinez at (804) 561-4658 or e-mail her at jamngin@yahoo.com.
If you are with non-profit organization and would like a space at the 2012 Festival,
please call Jeannette Porter at (804) 561-6444 or e-mail her at porterscribe@gmail.net.
If you can provide entertainment or would like to perform at the 2012 Festival, please call Joy Garrett at (804) 561-3311 or e-mail her at idancr@tds.net or Bekki Morris at (804) 561-3655 or e-mail her at bekki@ameliamonitor.com .
If you need any information about the 2012 Amelia Day Festival celebrating
Amelia's 277th Birthday, please contact bekki@ameliamonitor.com.