BOWDOINHAM
Bowdoinham celebrates agriculture, arts and the tradition of coming together this weekend with its annual Celebrate Bowdoinham event.
Celebrate Bowdoinham begins Friday night with the Bowdoinham Community School 5K Chicken Run. Money raised from the race goes to benefit school programs. Why a chicken run? The name taps into the town’s history, when volunteers in the 1970s and 1980s organized yearly chicken barbecues to raise money for an addition to the elementary school.
Later that night, the Merrymeeting Arts Center is brining back popular performers from Mainely Improve. The comedy improv group also performed at the arts center’s 10th anniversary celebration. This time, the performance moves to the town hall at 7:30 Friday night.
The community celebration gets into full swing on Saturday when Merrymeeting Arts Center will have its Local Myths Collection on display, a gift from the family of late, local artist Bryce Muir. Through the morning, a parade, art exhibits, and music are all planned within walking distance in the village.
“It’s always been about representing the Bowdoinham community,” said Town Planner Nicole Briand. “We’re excited that Bowdoinham’s Best is back this year.”
Bowdoinham’s Best is a celebration of the town’s agriculture community. It will feature Bowdoinham-grown fruits and vegetables. Residents are encouraged to bring anything they’ve crafted, grown or foraged to the Merrymeeting Hall Community Center.
“We always like to have our artists and crafters come down,” said Briand. “Our farmers put out a message to one another, hopefully we get a good turnout for the parade as well.”
While Briand expects the lobster crate races to be among the Saturday favorites, she said one of her personal favorite events is the pie contest. This year, proceeds will go toward the continuing renovations at the community center.
A full schedule of events, including kids activities on the waterfront, is available on the town website. To register for Friday’s 5K beginning at 5:30 p.m., visit 5kchickenrun.com.
chris@timesrecord.com
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