Reprinted from the Lexington Minuteman, September 27, 2012

To the Editor:

Over the course of 18 months, Lexington's Opening Ceremony Team grew from an idea to a team of 400+ volunteers.   Our vision: honor town traditions, introduce 300th events, celebrate our diversity, underscore our role in American history, and recognize Lexington’s past, present and future leaders. No small order!

Lexington’s love of music was conveyed by The Master Singers, the Lexington Minute Men, William Diamond Fife & Drum,
the LHS Wind Ensemble, Singalong Chorus, LexFUN!, Lee  Caron, Chris Myers, David Harris, Daniel Harris and Robert John. 
Our love of dance was portrayed by Darlene Wigton, Lincoln Clark, Jayshree Bala Rajamani and Studio Ten Tap Dancers. 
The 10thRegiment of Foot surprised everyone!

Our technical directors, Andrea Stumpf (LHS) and Chris Gaffron (Cary), brought our vision to life. Florence DelSanto, Executive Director at LexMedia, added dimension.  She saw the path to support our vision (requiring audio/video feed from both locations) and add the complexity of a live broadcast.  Her team of 17+ people made it work.    
 
Donna Hooper and the Town Clerk’s Office were instrumental, as were Linda Vine, Marie McDonnell and the Board of
Selectmen.  Laurie Lucibello, Don Johnson, and the teams from Public Facilities, Ray Drapeau, DPW, Police and Fire 
gave full support.  Our custodians took extra steps to put polish and shine on both facilities while keeping guests safe.  
 
 Wilson Farms created breathtaking cakes worthy of  a 300th birthday and Whitsons lent a cart for the cake.  Vistaprint
provided banners for the halls.
 
Special thanks to the women who took on the lion’s share of the work:  Ilene Benghiat, Carin Casey, Kim Coburn, Margaret Counts-Klebe, Diane Daily, Sandy Kahn, Sharon Kendall, Polly Kienle, Faith Lin, Cheryl Meadow, Susan Navia, Betsy Sarles, Ronni Skerker, Annabelle Snyder, Francine Stieglitz, Martha Wood, and Emily Ye.

We will share photos and the list of volunteers at lexington300.org.  Whether you were with us, watched at home, or will watch later, know this ceremony came from a team. 
 
Tanya Morrisett & Jessie Steigerwald
Opening Ceremony Co-Producers

Ticket Requests & Responses

After receiving over 3500 requests for tickets, the 300th Ticket Team worked over a period of three weeks to sort through every submission.  The requests were time-stamped, and 1700 tickets (maximum capacity) were assigned in the order they were received. The Town Clerk's office provided oversight and duplicate requests were eliminated.

Confirmations:
Letters have now been mailed to those whose requests were received first, confirming the number of tickets available for that household, and the location (Lexington High School or Cary Hall).  Recipients are asked to please consider returning any tickets they do not need (e.g. for college students who may not be home), to help take people off the wait list.  Please email us if you would like to return tickets. 

Wait List:
People who did not receive tickets at this time have been placed on a wait list.  In early September, the 300th Ticket Team hopes to be able to offer some tickets to those who are now on the Wait List based on the number of tickets returned.

Ticket Pick-Up:
Printed tickets will be available for pick-up in September.  Recipients were provided with information in their letters.

Frequently Asked Questions:

If I did not get tickets, can I still see the Opening Ceremony?  Will it be taped or broadcast?
Yes, thanks to LexMedia, the Opening Ceremony will be taped and broadcast.  Please check LexMedia for details in September.

How can I be part of Opening Day if I did not receive tickets?
Opening Day events will run from sunrise to sunset on Saturday September 22, 2012!  

Please learn more about the following Opening Day events:
  • All Town Picnic - Track & Fields on Worthen Road, 11:00 a.m.
  • Old-Time Country Fair - Hastings Park, 11:00  a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
  • Dance Revolution 300 - Lexington High School, Community Dance, 6:30 - 10:00 p.m.

Have you considered adding a third venue, in addition to Cary Hall and Lexington High School?
Initially, we were going to hold the Opening Ceremony in Cary Hall only.  However, knowing that interest might exceed the 750 seat capacity in Cary Hall, we decided to hold this event in Cary Hall and LHS.  This more than doubled the number of people who could attend.  It also doubled the number of volunteers needed to organize the event.  Realizing we were over-subscribed, the Opening Ceremony Team has considered adding a third venue but determined that it was beyond the ability of the Team to extend to a third "live" location.  Maybe the 350th Anniversary Committee will decide to expand after reviewing tapes from the 300th!  

How can I be part of the 300th Anniversary if I am out of town on Opening Day?
The 300th Anniversary includes 9 months of activities planned so that everyone may participate.  Here are other events planned by the Town:
In addition to these town sponsored events, other organizations in town are planning exciting Supporting and Coordinating events!