April 08, 2022| Community, Events
By: Caitlin Doran
This post is part of a series of articles celebrating the Lake Hopatcong Foundation's 10th anniversary and a decade of protecting our lake, together. This look back at the origins of the Lake Hopatcong Block Party is told by LHF Development Director Caitlin Doran, with help from organizers throughout the years.
Marty Kane had walked the Rutherford Street Fair and Madison’s Bottle Hill Day countless times, but in 2013, he saw the two events with a fresh set of eyes, eyes that saw a similar event at Lake Hopatcong. Both were great examples of community gatherings, with a slice of each town’s businesses, nonprofits, and clubs all in attendance – a great day for families, friends, and neighbors to gather. He found himself asking, “Why not here?”
“It was amazing to see these other town-wide fairs come together,” says Marty. “Here at the lake, each of the four towns had its own events and celebrations, but there really wasn’t an event that connected them all and created a sense of one lake, one community. And that’s, of course, what the Foundation is trying to accomplish with this event – bring together one, unified lake neighborhood. So, naturally, when we were naming the event, Block Party is the one that stuck!”
Within a year, the first-ever Lake Hopatcong Block Party was organized, with past Executive Director Jessica Murphy, Development Director Lauren Rossi, and Program and Grants Director Donna Macalle-Holly working with an event coordinator to make it great. The always smiling Judy Caruso was recruited to help coordinate volunteers, and she quickly rallied others to help.
“My kids had graduated, I had retired from working as a nurse, and I felt like I didn’t have my people anymore. This helped me find my new people,” said Judy. “I warned Lauren Rossi that I was a great follower, not a great leader, but I ended up a leader anyway!” (The power of past staffer and our good friend, Lauren Rossi, ladies and gentlemen.) Judy also stressed that you don’t need to live on the lake to be part of the lake, which is another reason she likes the Block Party so much. It brings such a wide variety of volunteers and attendees together.
From there, the Block Party took off, and it began to attract more vendors (and more people). Soon it became clear that a team was needed to dedicate their full focus to the Block Party, as our other programs and initiatives were also growing.
“We quickly realized this event was big and only getting bigger, and we needed to put it into the capable hands of skilled volunteers, so it wouldn’t consume the staff,” Marty explained. “I thought immediately of my colleague from Picatinny, Lee Moreau.”
Lee Moreau wears many hats. A longtime resident of Landing, people might know Lee from his other job as one of the many capable captains at the helm of The Miss Lotta, which Lee sites as the biggest factor in connecting the dots around the lake and bringing people together to be part of the event. When it comes to shepherding the Block Party, Lee claims he was only answering the call for help, which he pointed out, so many others in this community are always willing to do. Lee was previously the Director of Family Morale, Welfare, and Recreation for Picatinny, so he knows the importance of creating a sense of community all too well.
While a lot of similar events are profit-driven, Lee explains, “This event wasn’t about making money, it was more about building relationships. The event is meant to mirror the surrounding community, with its participation from businesses and nonprofits.” He goes on to say, “Each booth has a story, and it’s hard to share them all, but they all matter.” Lee also emphasized two points. First, that he is now part of a team of people that make the event happen. Second, the event doesn’t go on without the incredible support from the aforementioned army of volunteers, who find us through word of mouth, active recruiting, an interest in the lake, and an interest in giving back. This army is managed by what are called “Volunteers-In-Charge”, veteran volunteers who organize and lead the others. This was a concept Lee brought over from Picatinny. Additionally, there are many behind-the-scenes people whose participation is integral, like the four municipalities, Hopatcong State Park, the fire, police, and EMS volunteers, and those willing to barter for much-needed services, like offsite parking and shuttles.
Beth and her husband Dave moved from Ridgewood to Mount Arlington in pursuit of life at the lake, and she echoed Lee’s statements, saying, “There’s always something good happening, progress being made, and an expansion on the things we want to do.” This includes expanding walk-about entertainment for families to enjoy. Over the years, the Block Party has added more and more entertainment, like free boat rides, trackless train rides, a scavenger hunt, Irish step dancing performances, visits from Star Wars characters, and more.
Barb Kraus has expertly organized the backend of the Block Party since 2015, pulling together all the registrations and data to understand the progress of the event from month to month. And her enthusiasm as a Volunteer-in-Charge for the 50/50 raffle in 2016 and 2017 made for some best-ever raffle years, with Barb going above and beyond to cheer on the sellers (rumor has it, she offered a personal bottle of wine to the top sellers). The team has come to rely heavily on Barb’s expertise and skills and having her formally help with the planning has made for an even more tightly run ship.
The Block Party has only been cancelled twice, and it took a nor’ easter and a global pandemic to do so. The 2020 cancellation was especially tough for the team, who had sold out the Block party before the shutdown and held onto hope that it could be moved to the fall. Ever-changing state mandates and health guidance proved this to be too difficult, however. That did not deter the team from finding a solution the following year though.
The team planned for two eventualities in 2021 – a spring and fall block party, with the fall block party proving to make the most sense. The vendors and attendees that joined us in October were rewarded with a perfect-weather day, and while covid-guidelines were still followed, they were less restrictive and made for a great outdoor event. It was clear that people were happy to be attending large events again.
Back in its usual home in the month of May, the Block Party continues to expand, with safety demonstrations, great participation and help from the towns, support from individuals on the lake, and lots of offsite parking options to maximize the number of attendees. We are so excited to be organizing our seventh block party, which promises all the fun of previous years and more.
When asked what the Block Party might look like in ten years, Lee replied, “Hopefully, we’re still gathering like this, celebrating a totally clean and healthy lake, free of phosphorus and harmful algal blooms. We’ll be gathering because there’s nothing else to do but have fun!”
Us too, Lee. Us, too!
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Advocacy, Arts & Culture, Community, Education, Environment, Events, Fundraising, LHF Environmental & Cultural Center, People, Recreation, Safety
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