Manor's Labor Day celebration will benefit from weekend craft show

Ever since Mayor Ed Malinoski moved to Manor 11 years ago, he has heard residents reminiscing about an old borough tradition.

The community’s Labor Day carnival was hosted by the local fire department for about 80 years before it finally shut down in 2002.

“All I hear is, it was the place to go on Labor Day weekend,” Malinoski said. “Even people in other communities (said) Manor was the place to go.”

This fall, Malinoski and a committee of organizers plan to bring back the carnival in a new iteration for the first time in 20 years. The Manor Community Day will take place from 11 a.m. till dusk Sept. 2.

“When I was appointed mayor, one of my goals was to get the community together,” Malinoski said. “I wanted to start out small, but I put a committee together, and they decided they wanted to go big.”

To raise funds for the community day celebration, there will be a spring craft show from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday in the Manor Community Room, 44 Main St.

“It was a very big tradition that they would have a Labor Day fair,” said Nicole LeMaster, fundraising chair for the Community Day board.

Light refreshments will be available at the craft show and proceeds will benefit the community day, she said, but most of the funds raised are coming from about 24 vendors who paid a set-up fee.

The community day event is projected to cost around $15,000, Malinoski said. The borough has enough money to stage the event but is raising funds to try to reduce the $10,000 that the town plans to put towards the celebration. Malinoski anticipates the borough may receive grant funding.

Kids’ activities, live music, craft and local food vendors will be available at the community day. The committee is finalizing details, but hopes to have a fireworks display to round out the evening.

“My end goal as mayor is to get the community together — to become that small cohesive town that everyone wants to go to,” Malinoski said. “With the support of the locals, this may become a common occurrence — not just once a year, but we may get together multiple times a year.”