Club Events
New Canaan Exchange Club Events
Each year one of the Service Organizations takes the job of organizing a town-wide volunteer activity (XCNC did it in 1998) in which residents accept responsibility for a stretch of highway and byway, cleaning up the area, collecting trash and transporting it to the dump. People tend to manage their own neighborhoods, and after a local “manager” has volunteered, he or she recruits others from their street to help on the designated Saturday.
The more public areas, and some of the “country” roads, are assigned to organizations and groups. XCNC participates every year and with good organization and willing member volunteers devotes about three hours to this activity.
All over Fairfield County needy homeowners are selected to have their homes work on by volunteers. Americares manages the project, a wide selection of vendors supply the necessary materials, and Service Groups, Churches and other organizations provide the manpower.
Each year about thirty Exchangites turn out for this, and there is work that can be done by all qualities of craftsmanship (someone even has to go get lunch!). The prime reward for this day’s work (divided into two shifts) is the look on the face of the homeowner as they see the transformation the group has worked.
Every year the town of New Canaan celebrates Memorial Day with a parade, and every year the Exchange Club proudly marches near the head of the parade. There is a National program in Exchange called Give a Kid a Flag to Wave and we participate in a very strong way. Each year some of our members hand out flags to the spectators, young and old, as the rest of our contingent maintains formation in the line of march.
In addition the Club pays for one of the bands and often has one or two vintage cars to round out our contribution.
At this Annual party, held by the Society to honor patrons and friends, the Club provides a simple but important service: we serve the ice cream! A team of about twelve of us work three shifts, adding ice cream to the pie and cake that is being served.
The New Officer and Board Installation Dinner - BUSINESS/SOCIAL EVENT
The Club holds two or three events in the year that give us a chance to bring our spouses and significant others together. This event, at which the newly elected officers and Board members are installed by a District Official, is held in June, at the Roger Sherman Inn.
The Exchange club Golf event - FUND RAISING
This relatively new fund-raiser is just getting into its stride. Held at the New Canaan Country Club.
In cooperation with the Board of Recreation, who provide the soft drinks, the ice cream, and the booth, The Exchange Club provides the manpower to sell the goods! In a frenzied afternoon and evening, hundreds of the town’s residents are served by a team of members, working two-hour shifts. In addition to a good exposure to the town, we split the revenue with the Board of Recreation, generating funs for the Club
Member Progressive Dinner - SOCIAL EVENT
Another opportunity to bring our spouses together, we hold the Progressive Dinner in the fall. While this is a “floating feast”, the actual date being dictated by other events on our timetable, it follows the same pattern. The participants met for cocktails and hors d’oevres at a member’s house. After about an hour the party breaks up into groups and goes to the various host houses, members who have agreed to handle six or eight people for dinner. After dinner the group again convenes at another member’s house for dessert and liqueurs. The entrée and wine are provided to the host houses by the club, and each guest brings some component of the meal.
Annual Gourmet Dinner and Auction - FUND RAISER & SOCIAL EVENT
The Annual Gourmet Dinner and Auction will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, November 4, 2006, at the Country Club of New Canaan. Net proceeds from the event will benefit the Parenting Skills Center, a Stamford-based organization dedicated to the prevention of child abuse, and other education and awareness and child abuse prevention programs. << Press Release >> Donation Form (MS Word / PDF)
Generous underwriting support and direct grants to date have come from entities such as General Electric, PepsiCo, Ann Taylor, Oak Hill Capital, Bank of America, Morton's and other anonymous donors.
The event features a champagne reception and gourmet dinner under the direction of the Country Club's Executive Chef, John Byrne; entertainment by concert pianist Patti Preiss; a silent auction; and a live auction of luxury items, vacation homes and adventures. Christine Downing is this year's auctioneer.
Chef Byrne, Executive Chef of the New Canaan Country Club, is a classically trained chef and graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. Joining Chef Byrne will be Exchange Club Sommelier Richard Kruth, who will give brief descriptions between courses of each of the selected wines, which have been donated by Exchange Club collectors, enthusiasts, vintners and vendors from their private cellars or inventories.
Ms. Preiss, a classically-trained pianist known for her work in contemporary jazz, is equally proficient in classical, pop and musical theater styles. She has appeared at New York's Carnegie Recital Hall and at jazz festivals in the Netherlands, Norway and in Cannes, France, and recorded with legendary folk artist Arlo Guthrie. She is noted as an "emerging contemporary performer" in Linda Dahl's book, "Stormy Weather," and is cited in "Who's Who of American Women" and "Who's Who in Entertainment."
The Parenting Skills Center, a Stamford-based organization supported by area Exchange Clubs, strives to prevent child abuse through bi-lingual counseling and teaching programs which are designed to help both parents and children in a five-town region build safe and supportive family relationships. Its Parent Aide program assists families with children who are victims of or at risk of witnessing substance abuse, domestic violence, serious non-accidental physical injury, physical neglect, sexual abuse, and emotional abuse by their parent or guardian. As with many Connecticut social service agencies, state funding has been significantly reduced for this agency, necessitating a heavier reliance on benefactors such as the Exchange Club.
Chris Burns of New Canaan is benefit chairman. Committee members include Brandon Blaylock, underwriters; David Tucker and Richard Kruth, dinner and wine; Kevin Hansley, auction items; Brian Lee, production; Patricia Hedlund, decorations and reception; and Jack Devlin, finance. Mike Allocca is president of the New Canaan Exchange Club this year.
Tickets, at $150 per person, can by purchased through Mr. Burns at 203-966-1401, or any club member.
The New Canaan Exchange Club is a civic organization working to improve its local community through programs that support Americanism, Community Service, Youth Activities and the Prevention of Child Abuse. Fund-raising activities are conducted through the Exchange Club of New Canaan Foundation, Inc., a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization. The Exchange Club Foundation has undertaken fund raising events for over 50 years on behalf of local community outreach organizations and child abuse prevention programs.
The Nature Center Fall Fair is a popular event, eagerly anticipated by the children of New Canaan. One of the features is a Hay Ride – a tractor pulled cart takes the kids on a trip through the woods. Traditionally Exchange provides volunteers to help the children on and off the cart (one year we even drove the tractor!).
Christmas tree sales - FUND RAISER
This activity is the focus of the Exchange year and is the major fund raising event. Every member of the Club (ca 100 people) has a job to do in this month-long sales effort.
Starting on the day after Thanksgiving, when the fresh trees arrive from North and South and are unloaded by members at the Tree Lot in Kiwanis Park, through to Christmas Eve, the sales office is open. Members help customers select a tree, trim it to order, and tie it to the customer’s car. We also offer wreaths, roping, tree stands and a myriad of other Christmas related items. Members man the Tree Lot in four shifts each weekend, and during the week members supervise paid high school students.
To kick off the shopping season, New Canaan has a parade that features the arrival of Santa Claus. The parade winds through town and ends up at the Exchange Tree Lot in Kiwanis Park, where Santa takes up residence in his Office in the Girl’s Scout Hut. Santa (from a team of Santas!) is on duty every weekend in December, and at no charge customer’s children visit his fully decorated office to talk to him.
Outside the sales office at the Tree lot stands a wooden reindeer, which is a mail box in which children can “post” their letters to Santa Claus. There is another in the library. Every letter is answered, on Santa’s letterhead, and we get pleased reports from parents on their kid’s reactions.
At this season of the year there are several events in which teams of Exchange members get involved. We sponsor events at the Waveny Care Center, including the funding for grab bag gifts, at Waveny Park (the Senior Citizens luncheon, which we fund) and gifts to one of our special charities, the ABC House, with gifts for the resident boys (we also invite them to a seasonal dinner). We get involved as required at the Lapham Center, we provide a traveling Santa to a company in New York City (who then donates to our Foundation), and are ready at all times when called upon by the town or organizations.
Christmas Party - THE SOCIAL FINALE TO THE YEAR
In the last weeks of December we convert one of our meeting dinners to a Christmas Party at the Country Club. With a good band, excellent dinner, a good time is always had be all. Any required subsidy is from member’s fees and NOT from donated funds.
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