Street Fair and Parade on Tap for Mahopac
Sunday figures to be a festive day on Route 6N in Mahopac with not one, but two annual events scheduled.
The 12th annual Greater Mahopac-Carmel Chamber of Commerce Street Fair is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. A major part of the fair is the Italian American Club of Mahopac’s annual Columbus Day Parade, which kicks off from Route 6 at Lake Casse at 2:30 p.m. and will end in Chamber Park.
The pairing of the two events has become a tradition for Putnam County residents, two of the events’ organizers said last week.
Chamber CEO Mike Bucci said 12 years ago the two local organizations decided to hold the parade and the fair on the same day to allow residents of Putnam County, including Mahopac and Carmel, to be introduced to the businesses in the area and have an activity to take part in various events. “It’s a family type of thing,” he said.
Italian American Club of Mahopac head Giulio Cefaloni said the combination of both events has become a tradition in the county. “Over the years it has evolved as a Putnam County day,” he said.
The grand marshal of this year’s parade is Kacey Morabito Grean, co-host of the “Mike & Kacey” morning show on WHUD-FM. The honorary grand marshals are Cefaloni’s daughter ,Juliet M. Cefaloni, and Barbara Reitz .
Aside from the parade, several other events are slated for the street fair.
A first time fair event is a Movie Night, featuring the animated “The Lego Movie.” Bucci said the Chamber of Commerce chose to hold the movie night to encourage families to stay later at the fair and patronize the area’s eateries. Seating for the movie will begin at 6:30 p.m. and the film will start at 7:05 p.m.
The fair will also feature live music from three local bands, Remember September, Crash and a Plethora of Nothing. There will be many choices of food available, as well as family entertainment and rides and giveaways.
More than 175 marches, from many local organizations are expected to take part this year. Cefaloni said.
The Columbus Day Parade is just one of the fall events sponsored by the Italian American Club of Mahopac. A golf outing is slated for Oct. 20 and a Pasta and Movie Night will be held on Nov. 2.
Every year the Club chooses on charity to donate proceeds from its events, Cefaloni said. This year’s charity is the Westchester and Putnam Women’s Resource Center.
The Club has taped two programs at the Comcast studio in Carmel in conjunction with the parade, Cefaloni said. The shows are “Getting to Know the Marshals” and a cooking show in which the marshals cook Italian family specialties, he said.
Bucci said the events could not take place without the efforts of the Italian American Club of Mahopac and a committee from the Chamber. “The event is possible because of office administrator Terry Fokine and our Street Fair Committee headed by Domenic Zecca,” Bucci said.
Cefaloni said the Columbus Day parade is not just a celebration of Italian culture. “We respect all heritages,” he said.
For more information about the street fair visit MahopacCarmelOnline.com. For more information about the parade call Giulio or Linda Cefaloni at 845- 628-164.
