Organizers need help in order to hold garage sale.
By: Josh Appelbaum
A popular springtime Cranbury tradition, the annual Evans Tract garage sale, is in jeopardy once again.
The event was organized last year by Griggs Road resident Anne Way, who recently moved from Cranbury.
The sale’s original organizers, Leo and Betty Fenity, of Evans Drive, helped start the sale in 1989, which in recent years reached block-party status as Brainerd and Evans drive families hawked their wares at the community garage sale.
The Fenitys, who are in their 70s, stepped aside after the 2003 sale and said organizing it took too much work and time. Last week, Mr. Fenity said no one has stepped forward to take the reins.
"We’d be willing to help someone tackle the sale, but it’s too much to do on our own," Mr. Fenity said.
He said last year’s sale, which was held April 25, suffered from bad weather. He also suggested interest in the event has waned among tract residents and the community at large.
"When a family has yard sales for five or 10 years, they’re shopped out," Mr. Fenity said. "They don’t have anything more they want to get rid of. And last year wasn’t one of the best turnouts."
In its inaugural year, the sale was comprised of 12 families, and grew to an average of 50 families in the mid-1990s, peaking at 62 families in 1999.
Mr. Fenity said he charged $5 per family to sell during the Evans Tract event. The money went toward the cost of advertising. Leftover proceeds benefit the Cranbury Fire Department or the Cranbury First Aid Squad.
He said many local groups, including the Girl Scouts and travel soccer teams, used the event to bolster fund-raising for their activities.
"It was similar to Cranbury Day in some respects," Mr. Fenity said. "During successful years we’d have to restrict parking. An awful lot of people came by, it really brought the community together."
Cranbury has long been recognized as a good yard sale town, said Mr. Fenity. He said a multitude of collectors and craft dealers say Cranbury is a good town for this type of event because everyone gets involved.
However, Mr. Fenity said he believes that if the sale doesn’t take place this year it might spur interest in coming years.
"Some things become tradition over the years," Mr. Fenity said. "But things change and neighbors change you might see it back in a couple of years."

