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THURSDAY, JULY 1, 2021
Mike Metz cleans up the area around the gazebo located in the back
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Volunteers Aubrey Beck, Ben Taylor, Victoria Petroff, Lorraine Hanover, Mike Metz, Katy Harington, and Terry Hanover in front of the Allan Boyd Memorial Gazebo
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Volunteers clean up the gazebo area in the back of the center
Friends of New Troy Community Center reopens to the public, plans summer of activities
olunteers gathered Saturday, June 26, to clean up the inside and outside of a place that has become a thriving community gathering space: the Friends of New Troy Community Center. The center, which has been closed since March 18, 2020, due to Covid, offically reopened to the public July 1. According to Victoria Petroff, vice president of the Friends of New Troy (FoNT) Board of Directors, the library has reopened, and yoga classes have resumed. Skybird Yoga’s founder Elizabeth Nuti (who’s also a trustee on the board of directors) offers in-person classes weekly in FONT’s Community Room Fridays, Saturdays, and Tuesdays in the mornings. The center’s new bathrooms will also be seen by the public, as their huge renovation just got underway when the center closed. “So much has been done in the building that nobody has seen yet – and we’re still working on things,” Petroff said. The library is the next big project. Petroff said the plan is to turn it more into a media center “to help accommodate the folks around here with lack of Wi-Fi and computers.” She added that there’s free Wi-Fi that was updated throughout the building.
BY FRANCESCA SAGALA
“It’s an attempt to engage local famers Also returning are summertime events. - those who have roadside stands, those First up is the Strawberry Social, which who don’t generally attend farmers will take place from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, markets - and try to get them to come July 11. The event, which is free to the out and display what they have but also public, is put on by Boyd family. The that people know where they are,” Petroff family donated the gazebo behind the said, adding that the market will serve as center to FONT in honor of Allan Boyd, a “central location once a month” to give a longtime resident who passed away the famers exposure. in 2017. Brett Boyd of Classic Catering The market will also feature artisans and Events will be making refreshments and live music, as of strawberry well as games for shortcake and children. ice cream and The market is members of the being spearheaded band Down by by Aubrey Beck, the Dock will be who said that performing in the vendors are still gazebo. being sought. New this year Interested vendors will be the FONT can download an Market, a Friday application on night market that FoNT’s website. will debut from For the first 4 to 8 p.m. July market, Classic 23. Describing Catering will be it as “more bringing back than a farmers taco specials market,” Petroff from the former said the market Old Mill Run is an attempt to restaurant that combine elements used to be located of the center’s in New Troy. The indoor flea Lorraine Hanover works on the landscaping restaurant was markets. at the gazebo located in back of the center
owned by Brett Boyd and featured a taco night. “It’s kind of became a local legend… People lined up down the street waiting for tacos,” she said. All proceeds from the FoNT Market will benefit the Community Center. Petroff said FoNT began as a group of citizens who wanted to “preserve the building,” which was the former elementary school. “They knew they wanted to do something to invest in the community and make sure the building stayed as a source of historical relevance and a community gathering place,” she said.
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ow, Petroff said, the current board of directors have taken it a step further. Throughout the closure, members have started “restructuring,” which will make it easier to apply for grants. “We can give you a plan for the future now, we can give what our ideas are and aspirations and plans for engagement, what our expectations are of volunteers,” she said. Friends of New troy is a 501(c)3 nonprofit. The community center is located at 13372 California Road in New Troy, Michigan. More information can be found on the newly revamped website, www.friendsofnewtroy.org.
