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Lunch on the Lawn draws crowd
Jun 21, 2009
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| Season's first event features food, music | ||
Sunday, June 21, 2009 By PAUL COLLINS - Bulletin Staff Writer About 160 people attended this season's first Lunch on the Lawn outside the old Henry County courthouse Friday, despite temperatures in the 90s and a heat index that topped 100. For Mary Ann Clark of Martinsville, it was a homecoming of sorts. She worked in the old courthouse for 42 years as a deputy clerk in the probate division of Henry County Circuit Court Clerk's Office, she said as she ate a chicken lunch with her husband, Jim, at a shaded table. "I love the food and music and talking to people," she said of Lunch on the Lawn. Jim Clark agreed, and added that the event attracts people uptown. He knows a little about that. He coordinates the Martinsville-Henry County Lions Club's bluegrass shows at the Rives Theatre uptown. Sitting at the next shaded table over were, among others, Anna McClain and Anne Lackey, both of Martinsville, and Wren Williams of Stuart. "It was a nice event," McClain said. "It was good to get outside in summer and have lunch." Lackey agreed: "I love eating outside. The music was perfect, just the whole setting. I like seeing people you know and people you don't know." Williams, who is working as a summer intern in the office of attorney and state Sen. Roscoe Reynolds, said he enjoyed musician Dean Smith's performance, especially his rendition of John Mayer's "Your Body Is a Wonderland." "It was a good location on the lawn in front of the old courthouse," Williams added. Smith played a mix of folk, bluegrass and other music. Elizabeth Smith of Figsboro, sitting at the next table, said she enjoyed Lunch on the Lawn, except she would have preferred jazz music. Among other things, she said she liked the food and the "very nice" event coordinator (Mike Waddell) from Chick-fil-A, which sponsored Lunch on the Lawn. She added that it was a good excuse to get out of the house. "I think it helps the community," she said, by getting people to come uptown and possibly spend money. Admission and entertainment were free, as were tours of the old courthouse. Some people brought their own lunches, but Chick-fil-A sold food and beverages, too. Jewelry vendor Lara Blair of Martinsville sold some of the pieces she makes and passed out business cards for her business and that of a friend, Becky Labastilla of Let It Beadz, a store uptown. Blair said she loves live music, and events such as Lunch on the Lawn show people that there are things to do in Martinsville if they will just participate. Virginia King, president of the Martinsville-Henry County Historical Society, said a couple dozen people toured the old courthouse. "We were pleased people were interested in touring the courthouse. ... We had a display of how it used to look and what our plans" are, King said. She explained that a $98,000 federal grant and a $93,000 grant from The Harvest Foundation have been awarded for improvements to the old courthouse. There also will be a public fund drive for improvements to the building and grounds but final details have not been worked out, she said. Mike Waddell, unit marketing director for Chick-fil-A and coordinator of Lunch on the Lawn, said he was pleased with the turnout. He said the old courthouse lawn was packed at times. One popular attraction was the cow mascot (a person wearing a cow costume) that "mooooved" among the crowd. Friday's Lunch on the Lawn was held from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., and Waddell said the event will be held again (same hours) on July 17 and Aug. 14. If those events go well, Lunch on the Lawn may continue into the fall, maybe through October, and then resume in early spring, Waddell said. In July, the entertainment may be a more "contemporary adult mix," but that has not been finalized, Waddell said. Dean Smith is tentatively scheduled to perform again in August, Waddell said. At future events, there may be more nonfood vendors. Arts and crafts vendors and local small businesses are being considered, he said. As for now, Chick-fil-A is the sole sponsor, but if others are interested in being co-sponsors, they should contact Chick-fil-A, Waddell said. |
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