June Fete at 50

Looking back at the history and traditions of a key hospital fund-raiser.

By: Jillian Kalonick
   When the idea for June Fete was first conceived in 1954, one Medical Center (then known as Princeton Hospital) trustee expected the event to raise no more than a few hundred dollars.
   Mrs. Peggy Miller, wife of Dr. David Miller, had described the local hospital fete in her former home, Abington, Pa., to Women’s Auxiliary head Mrs. Donald Griffin and Mrs. Kenneth Fairman. According to an account written by Janet Gemmell in the 1963 June Fete program, "Mrs. Griffin presented the idea to her fellow trustees on the Hospital Board. She obtained their somewhat grudging approval: many of them felt it was little more than a time-killer for ‘the girls.’"
   Those girls proceeded to raise almost $10,000 and the "time-killer" became an annual event. After 50 years and millions of dollars raised for the Medical Center, the 50th annual June Fete, A Fair to Remember, will be held on Saturday, June 7, on Washington Road in West Windsor.
   If the first fete was held in 1954, and it’s only 2003, then how can it be the 50th Fete?
   "This year’s fete is the 50th Fete and the 49th anniversary of the fete," explains this year’s co-chair, Bettie Greber of Princeton Junction. "The first Fete in 1954 was followed by the second annual Fete in 1955 — which also was the first anniversary of the founding of the Fete."
   Ms. Greber and her co-chair Karen Fagard of Skillman marked the anniversary by researching past Fetes and traditions. "We spent just over a year looking at old programs, and wrote to 74 past chairs. We asked what innovations were made and about Fete history, and choice of themes," she said. "I came away with the feeling that they all worked very hard."
   Despite many rainy Fetes after the first warm-weather Fete, the event continued to raise money for the hospital —a total of $157,105.91 by 1962. First held at Columbus Boy Choir School (now the American Boychoir School), the event was then brought to Princeton University’s stadium, Westminster Choir College, various university fields and Community Park before moving to the university’s Washington Road fields.
   As Ms. Greber discovered, a trip through the Fete’s past also tells the story of Princeton’s past — and of the increasingly busy lives of wives and mothers who once had to look for ways to fill up their days.
   "They changed booths they had in reaction to social changes taking place. Women used to spend six months embroidering tea towels (to sell at the booths) — now we do different things," she said.
   Many Fete chairs recalled the difficulty of cleaning up after the party.
   "One of the problems in the ’50s and ’60s was that they had to pick up cigarette butts — until one of the women’s husband’s got a leaf-blower."
   Booths and games also changed with the times.
   "They used to call it a ‘girl dunk tank,’" said Ms. Greber. "Then it became a ‘person dunk tank.’ Now it’s just a ‘dunk tank.’"
   Innovative committee members also came up with a new theme for each year’s event, including a "Whale of a Fete," "A Royal Fete" and "A Honey of a Fete." For the 12th annual Fete in 1965, the booklet’s "Dozen Details" noted that "Nearly 800 Princeton families can have less work for Mother June 6. The Food Committee has promised that many casseroles!"
   Another typical 1960s detail: "The imaginative Decorating Committee has decreed that Fete Committee members shall dress in their choice of the Fete’s gay colors — pink, green, coral, yellow and orange."
   In a period piece titled "The Indispensable Men," the Women’s Auxiliary wonders, "Can you imagine what would happen on Fete day if the girls had planned all the electrical wiring? Or picture, if you will, our pink uniformed hospital volunteers directing traffic on Route 206!"
   Today the Fete involves the entire hospital community — men, women, youth and children — and countless businesses and organizations, with hundreds of volunteers logging thousands of hours. Sixty-five chairs in 33 areas each have a committee to help them with each activity, including the auction, Lane of Shops, Sports Alley and the children’s area.
   "We have volunteers as young as 8 years old," says Ms. Greber. "We have a lot of high school and college students coming out the week before and week after to help," including members of MCP’s Junior Auxiliary.
   The event can draw more than 10,000 people — similar to when Ms. Gemmell noted that "scarcely a soul in Princeton is not involved, either directly or indirectly … The Hospital Fete is now as solidly entrenched as Christmas in Princeton’s calendar of events."
   New features at Fete this year include a revival of a Fete cookbook, Fare to Remember (a compilation of recipes by past and present chairs), silk scarves and ties featuring the Fete logo, and door prizes awarded every 15 minutes on Fete day. This year, all proceeds will benefit the Breast Health Center at the Medical Center.
   According to Ms. Gemmell, in 1963 "The Hospital trustee who smiled indulgently at the ladies’ enterprise in 1954 may be seen these days with his lips pursed in an admiring whistle."
The 50th Annual June Fete, "A Fair to Remember," will be held Saturday, June 7, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Washington Road, West Windsor. Tickets for valet parking are $10 per car, and can be purchased on the field or in advance at the hospital’s gift shop. Free shuttle service will also be available from Princeton University parking lots. "Up, Up and Away: The Golden Celebration" dinner dance will be held Friday, June 6, from 8 p.m. to midnight. Tickets are $100. For full details on the dinner dance, races, and Fete activities, visit www.mcp.org/fete.