What I am doing December 1

Every year I call up a bunch of local musicians—some of whom I know well, some of whom I just admire from afar—and ask them if they will play for free in the lounge of a church parish house downtown to raise funds for a nursery school which my kids used to attend. It’s an odd offer, but in nine years nobody has yet turned it down.

The book fair is today. I’m telling everybody about it in every outlet I have access to, since some of the newspapers I sent press releases to didn’t list it.

Hopefully you can come. It’s a special event, and a particularly exhausting yet exhilarating one for some of us.

Family Fun Fair at United Community Nursery School

Annual Holiday Book Fair & Family Festival

 

 

Saturday, December 1

10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

United Community Nursery School

323 Temple Street

(corner of Temple and Wall streets, downtown, a couple of buildings behind the New Haven Public Library).

Admission: $4 person for ages 2 and up, includes all entertainments and kids’ activities.

 

• Scholastic Book Fair

• A full-length Roxi Fox Puppet Show performed by Betty Baisden

• Silent Auction, with museum memberships, handmade gift items and more

• Lunches and baked goods for sale

• Lots of Kids Activities—crafts, games, facepainting

• Nursery School Open House

MUSIC SCHEDULE

10:30 a.m.: Wayfarers (folk songs)
11 a.m.: Gary Mezzi & Tom Smith (original roots rock songs for kids)
11:30 a.m.: Jesse Balkcom (7-year-old classical guitarist)
Noon: Betty Baisden’s Roxi Fox puppet show.
12:45 p.m.: Henry Sidle (13-year-old busker, doing rock classics on acoustic guitar)
1:15 p.m.: Elm City Mayhem (family-friendly rap group featuring UCNS teacher Lance Ligon)
1:45 p.m. (may be sooner if ECM is short): Todd Stoops (keyboardist for the bands Raq and Kung Fu)
2:15 p.m.: Chris Arnott on ukulele (if needed)