Ellington Volunteer Fire Department's Annual Carnival Doesn't Disappoint

After a week of dreary weather, the skies cleared to allow thousands of people to flock to Ellington's to enjoy the annual Ellington Volunteer Fire Department carnival and parade.

The parade included a wide variety of participants, from fire departments to fife and drum corps. Fire departments from , , , Vernon, Broad Brook, Tolland, Mansfield, Warehouse Point, East Windsor, the CT Fire Museum, Shaker Pines – Enfield, Bolton, South Windsor, Manchester/8th Utilities District, Willington Hills, East Farmington, East Granby, Bloomfield, East Hartland, Agawam, Cromwell, Canaan, Simbury, Middlebury, Windsor Locks, Riverton (Barkhamsted) and Norfolk took part.

Participants also included several fife and drum corps from Granby and Warehouse Point, the Ellington Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, and Ellington Roadrunner cheerleaders.

The parade was judged by the Connecticut Parade Marshals Association, and when it came time to announce the winning units, Middlebury Fire Department took “Best Overall Fire Unit.” Middlebury was a late entrant to this year's parade.

“We got two [phone] calls today – Middlebury was one and the other was Norfolk,” said Captain Jack Rich, Jr., EVFD's parade chairman. He said departments compete to accumulate points for the state convention and with recent weather events, such as Tropical Storm Irene, canceling some events and with the convention looming next Sunday, this was a prime opportunity for departments to get their three parades in that are needed to compete.  

The Vernon Fire Department took honors such as the “MAC Farrell Host Choice,” which is chosen by the Ellington Volunteer Fire Department, “Best Appearing Fire Unit without Music,” “Best Appearing: Rescue” and “Most Firefighters in Line.”

“We had 40-45 members take part,” said Vernon Fire Chief Bill Call. “Everyone did a good job.”

Call said Vernon has participated in the parade for as long as anyone can remember and said his firefighters scrubbed the apparatus down to prepare for Saturday's parade – including the 1985 rescue truck that was polished up for the occasion.

“As long as Ellington has been doing [the parade], Vernon has participated,” said Call. “Ellington is a mutual aid partner and we've always tried to assist them with their parade.”

For some people, like Jenny Decina Larson and her family, the Ellington “firemen's fair” has been a family tradition that started 13 years ago, and one that Larson has started with her 5 month old daughter, Adalynn, who was attending her first fair.

“She's going to ride the Merry-Go-Round for the first time,” said Larson. Larson and her sisters Em, 20, and Dannielle, 17 have marched in the parades, with units such as the EHS Marching Band, Crystal Lake Fire Department or the Roadrunner cheerleaders.

Mary Smith from Vernon has been coming to the fair for years with her family. She was ordering cheesy fries and regular fries with her daughter, Haley, 9.

“It's my favorite one because it's not [really] expensive,” Smith said. “There are a lot of choices, but this one is affordable.”

Xavier, 13 months, is a repeat customer too, although he may not remember much from his  first time.

“That was his first time on the Merry-Go-Round,” said Xavier's father, Julio Duran of Enfield. “The first fair he came to was last year's [carnival], but he was too little for the rides then.”

But for Tori Johnston and her family, recent transplants from New York to Vernon, it was their first time at the carnival.

“It's actually quite nice here,” Johnston said. “We come from a small town – it's nice to come to a place that's very similar. It makes you feel more at home.”

EVFD carnival chairperson Betsi Feldman appreciates that the weekend the carnival takes place is a highly competitive one, with fairs also taking place in South Windsor and Hebron.

“It's very well supported and attended and it's very much appreciated that we have the support of the townspeople,” Feldman said.

EVFD Fire Chief Michael Varney was thankful the weather held out to allow the carnival to go on.

“We were very fortunate with the weather and we had a good turnout from our neighboring [fire] units,” he said. “Thursday night [attendance] was light because of the weather – Friday night and [Saturday] were good and we appreciate everyone coming.”

Here are some local fire departments who won awards:

MAC Farrell Host Choice – Vernon (Chosen by the EVFD)
Best Appearing Company in Shirts – Broad Brook
Best Appearing Without Music – Vernon
Best Appearing: Rescue – Vernon
Best Appearing EMS Unit – Tolland
Best Appearing Antique: Motorized – South Windsor
Most Firefighters in Line – Vernon
Best Auxiliary – Tri-Town CERT
Unit Coming from the Longest Distance – Canaan