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Merrimac 150th Committee outlines fundraising and event ideas, sets follow-up tasks
Summary
Committee members discussed a slate of fundraising ideas (gala, merchandise, restaurant fundraisers, commemorative coins) and a set of proposed events including a time capsule ceremony on April 11, 2026; members were assigned specific research and outreach tasks.
The committee discussed multiple fundraising concepts and event proposals to support Merrimac’s 150th celebration and assigned members to research feasibility and pricing.
Fundraising ideas reviewed included a 2025 Holiday Light Contest, a kickoff dinner or gala (potentially at the Slip Lounge), a food-truck party, merchandise sales (shirts, hats, sweatshirts), restaurant fundraisers (including Little Caesars, Flatbread and Sylvan Street Grille), and selling commemorative coins. Committee members volunteered to contact vendors and report back at a future meeting.
Planned and proposed events included a Santa parade float, a museum-style display at the library (historical quilt), a block party in the Squircle, concerts/bands and a beer garden, a bonfire, and projection of vintage Merrimac home movies. A time capsule ceremony was tentatively scheduled for April 11, 2026, with the new capsule proposed to be stored in the old ballot box for display in a town-hall cabinet.
Specific action items recorded in the minutes assigned follow-ups to named members: Lauren Santagate, Rob Gustison and Larry Fisher were asked to reach out to apparel vendors for pricing; Rob Gustison was assigned multiple tasks including outreach to the cultural council, arranging transport logistics with Brianne Walsh (transcript contains an inconsistent spelling as "Brienne" in one place), scheduling the safety meeting with police and fire chiefs, and requesting a QR code from Guilfoil’s team for names in the town-wide photo. Michelle Gustison was assigned to gather information about the town-wide photo; Larry Fisher was asked to pursue quilting/display contacts, check the ballot-box size, contact Fiesta Shows about a potential carnival, engage seniors in documenting local history and collect/count ducks from the Santa Committee.
The minutes note that state-sponsored grants for broad celebration costs were not found; members suggested that a narrowly scoped grant request (for example, a commemorative bench) might be more viable and that local banks want clarity on what exactly they would sponsor.
