ROBBINSVILLE: Town readying yearlong birthday bash

By Jessica Ercolino, Staff Writer
   ROBBINSVILLE — For the next two months, residents and officials will be hard at work preparing a big bash for the township.
   On March 15, the township will begin its sesquicentennial celebration — a year’s worth of fun and historical events to honor 150 years of Robbinsville (and Washington) Township.
   Planning for the event, which began three years ago, has mainly been headed by Robbinsville residents Nancy Tindall, Janet Van Nest, Jean Ward, Sonja Walter and the Friends and Historical Society of Robbinsville Township. The group also has received help implementing its the plans from a committee of township residents and officials.
   The celebration will kick off with an opening ceremony at Robbinsville High School. Other events throughout the year will include a parade, a carnival-themed community day, a Lenape Indian presentation at Windsor Farm exploring the tribe’s roots in town, and a gingerbread house competition at the Robbins House sponsored by the Women’s Club of Robbinsville Township.
   ”On the surface, it looks like a lot of community events, but they have a lot of basis in the town’s history, as well as national and world history,” Ms. Ward said. “We have a wide variety and we’re hoping it will draw everyone in town to at least one event, hopefully more.”
   The group also is planning a display of the town’s history at the library in February 2010. With the help of Township Clerk Michele Auletta and librarians at the Robbinsville library, the committee collected names of former township leaders and township meeting minutes dating back to the late 1800s.
   In 1859, the New Jersey Legislature enacted a law that designated a portion of East Windsor Township as Washington Township. In March of the following year, the first township meeting was held in Windsor to elect township officers and approve the amount of money to be raised for public purposes, the committee said. The township became Robbinsville in January 2008 when voters overwhelmingly supported a name change referendum.
   Ms. Walter, also a member of Township Council, said she is hoping the event will help area residents learn more about the historical makeup of the town.
   ”As much as this is about bringing the community together, it’s also an educational tool,” she said. “Where you live has an impact on who you are, and this will help make people aware of what led the township to where it is today.”
   While several of the events are set for the celebration, the sesquicentennial group is still looking for help in a number of areas. The event could use volunteers to perform research, run events, perform physical labor, act as greeters, sew costumes, make banners, take photographs and more.
   The planners said they also are searching for participants, banners, floats and a grand marshal for the celebration parade, which will be held in April. Area residents are also being asked to lend their voices to the celebration by singing in a choir.
   ”We’ve got everyone from senior citizens to young children,” Ms. Van Nest said. “Don’t worry about the quality — we’re looking for quantity. It’s a fun time.”
   The choir has about 25 participants, but the group is hoping to have 150 singers for the celebration. Practices are held every Monday at 7 p.m. in the Senior Center and all are welcome. Lyrics and MIDI files of the choir’s song are available on the celebration’s Web site, www.robbinsville150.org, for residents to practice at home.
   The 150th anniversary celebration will come to a close in March 2010 with the burying of a time capsule. Recorded history, photographs and newspaper articles will be included, Ms. Walter said, but families also will have the opportunity to have a picture taken and placed in the capsule.
   With two months to go, the committee feels there is still a lot of work to be done, and is hoping more residents will begin to join the cause.
   ”We welcome all ideas, help, inquiries, etc.” Ms. Walter said. “We want to make this as open to everyone in town as possible.”
   Anyone interested in working on the sesquicentennial event can contact the planning committee through www.robbinsville150.org. The next meeting will be held at 7:45 p.m. Jan. 26 in the Senior Center, through the side door.