The Berlin
Cit itiz ize en Volume 13, Number 40
Berlin’s Only Hometown Newspaper
Thursday, October 1, 2009
It’s time for the fair By Olivia L. Lawrence Associate Editor
Martlund’s Cemetery ready to scare, thrill By Robert Mayer Managing Editor When Jory Lund was growing up he used to help his cousin, Brett Marturano, with his Halloween haunted house. Since 1995 Marturano has decorated his house in Meriden and called it the “Hilltop House of Horrors.” But Marturano stopped decorating his house a few years ago and Lund wanted to continue the tradition the cousins started. Then came the idea of “Martlund’s Cemetery.” “I used to do it with Brett but he stopped doing it so we decided last year to try it out for a test run at our house,” Lund said. “When I was younger it was one of my fa-
Citizen photos by Olivia L. Lawrence
Martlund’s Cemetery, at the corner of Four Rod Road and Burnham Street, is set up and ready for groups to tour on Halloween night starting at 5:30 p.m. vorite things to do. We didn’t start decorating or getting ready until October last year. We threw up the decorations and concept in a month. We came up with the name by using half of Brett’s last name and my name combined.” This year, Lund, his family,
and a number of friends, started planning and drawing out the haunted tour much earlier and already have most of the tour set up. On Halloween night, beginning at 5:30 p.m. small See Tour, page 4
The 61st Annual Berlin Fair sponsored by the Berlin Lions Club kicks-off tomorrow, Oct. 2, when the gates open to the public at 11 a.m. The fair runs for three days Oct. 2, Oct, 3 and Oct. 4 — that’s Sunday when the gates close at 7 p.m. The three-day event is one of Connecticut’s largest agricultural fairs. Tomorrow, the fairgrounds come alive with animal, produce, craft, art, photo, food and flower exhibits. There will be music, a midway and many more entertainment features as well as local history displays, a tractor barn and fun, fun, fun. Discounted advanced ticket sales are available at Roger’s Marketplace, Kensington Opticians, Kensington Auto and Matson Rugs for $10. Tickets at the gate are $12 — that’s the same low price as last year. Those 62 and older, with proper identification, can get in for $8. Friday, Oct. 2, school children are admitted free until 6 p.m. “Please enjoy this year’s Berlin Fair. Pray for good weather and please utilize the off-site parking lots,” said 2009 Fair President Jeffrey Glatz. “We have plenty of busses and the consensus of the crowd says that is the best way to access the Berlin Fair.” Parking on-site at the fair is limited and shuttle busses are free. The busses run continuously, from all satellite parking areas to the front gate of the fairgrounds —
See Fair Tab pages 17-32 and back to the parking areas. Shuttle busses from the following sites will run Saturday 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.: Corbin Russwin Architectural/Emhart, 225 Episcopal Road, Berlin; Northeast Utilities CL&P, Berlin Turnpike; and Aetna Insurance Company, 1000 Middle St., Middletown. Busses will also run Friday only from Berlin High School, 139 Patterson Way, from noon to 10 p.m. Public schools and St. Paul School are closed Friday to allow staff and students to attend or volunteer at the Beckley Road fairgrounds. Most of the town staff has the day off for “employee appreciation day” authorized recently by the Town Council. Hundreds of volunteers make the fair a reality year after year and a significant portion of the proceeds are
See Fair, page 16