MANCHESTER, NH – The Holt Avenue neighborhood that for the past three years has come together to celebrate summer and have fun while doing good did it again.
The Aug. 13 “rain or shine” block party was a little of both, as a sudden cloudburst in the early afternoon only brought the 400 neighbors – and friends and relatives of neighbors – that much closer together.
“You should have seen us all huddled under the canopy,” said Daniel Mowery, one of several Holt Ave event organizers and unofficial spokesman. In addition to summer block parties, the neighbors also hold a Christmas party and regular neighborhood watch gatherings.
This year’s festivities included a cookie bake-off, a pie-eating contest for the kids, music provided by Your Way DJ, crafts and games, and raffles, which helped raise more than $2,000 for the Manchester Police Department Mounted Patrol. Food included hamburgers, hot dogs, ribs and sides, all provided by the neighbors.
Diane Stewart of Center Barnstead was declared the overall winner from among the nine cookie entries, which were judged blindly by an esteemed panel of self-proclaimed cookie experts – Ward 6 Alderman Crissy Kantor, mayoral candidate Jay Ruais, Ward 6 school board member Ken Tassey and Al McMahon.
“It was unanimous,” said Kantor – guided by her sweet tooth – of the judge’s choice. “It was chocolate chip and I think there was some peanut butter in there and something crunchy on the side and this unique flavor – I think it was some kind of pudding. It melted in your mouth.”
Mowery said the annual seasonal events are a team effort, with about eight neighbors doing the basic organizing and many others who pitch in to make sure community spirit is front and center.
In addition to raising money to benefit the mounted patrol through 61 donated raffle items, the neighbors also collected a van-load of cat and dog supplies to be donated to the Manchester Animal Shelter.
The event started with the pledge of allegiance and at noon, the St. Pius X church choir showed up – after services ended – to sing the national anthem.
