ATHOL – The End of Summer Festival, which will feature the Community Canvas art program, will be held this coming Saturday.
Sponsored by the Polus Center for Social and Economic Development and Athol Credit Union [ACU], the festival will take place on Saturday, Sept. 19, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Wills Terrace, 478 Main St. It will feature live music, food trucks and maker tables, which will be for youngsters participating in the Community Canvas program. Maker tables will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
“Community Canvas is our youth art initiative that we’re doing for school-age children, ages 5 and up,” Samantha Beauvais, marketing manager for ACU, said. “This will be the sixth event we’ve done. It’s done in part to get people to downtown Main Street.
“We previously held it in the YMCA Community Center,” she continued. “They’ve been a great supporter of ours. We’ve had about 75 kids come through, along with parents and guardians. Last summer, we ran one June, July, and August and we hung their artwork in the windows along Main Street downtown for the month of September.”
Beauvais said LaunchSpace will be offering spin-art for the children.
“The kids will also be painting critters – cardboard animals, suncatchers, upcycled planters and potted plants, and creating pressed flower bookmarks,” she said.
Vermont singer-songwriter Shaely O’Dou will perform from 2 to 5 p.m. O’Dou’s website says she draws “inspiration from country roots and small-town stories,” bringing “a warm, down-to-earth spirit to every performance…Shae loves creating moments that feel like home – inviting people to slow down, listen, and connect.”
Snacks from Lickety Splitz will also be available.
Polus Center Executive Director Michael Lundquist explained that the End of Summer Festival and Community Canvas are part of a larger initiative – Remaking Main Street – designed to reinvigorate downtown Athol.
“Like many communities that have been gentrified, it starts with the arts,” he said. “I was in Northampton for 10 years and there wasn’t much going on there until the artists moved in, and then the businesses followed. If you can get the artists and the people interested in the arts, then other businesses will follow.”
Information provided by Lundquist describes Remaking Main Street’s Small Business Showcase as a “seven-week, community-driven business accelerator designed to empower local entrepreneurs – particularly those from underrepresented and underserved groups” by providing “the tools, mentorship, and support needed to launch and sustain small businesses on Athol’s Main Street…The initiative culminates in a public capstone event where participants pitch their business plans to local stakeholders, boosting visibility and access to resources.”
The seven-week program is free.
“First prize is $10,000,” said Lundquist, “and it will be used to open businesses on Main Street.”
In addition to Athol Credit Union and the Polus Center, the Showcase is sponsored by Whipps, Inc., NewVue Communities and the Cooperative Credit Union Association. Beauvais said the next Community Canvas event is tentatively scheduled for February.
“It clearly gets bigger every time we do this,” said Lundquist. “We anticipate that there will be a lot of people here this weekend. We’ve been working on this for two years. The Community Canvas has really grown and, as it grows, we hope interest in Athol’s Main Street also grows.”
Those interested in the Remaking Main Street initiative can contact events@atholcu.com or visit atholcreditunion.com.