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00:00Greetings and welcome East Hampton and community.
00:29Thank you for tuning in to Cafe with Sandra Kaye.
00:33The Ladies Village Improvement Society Fair is back.
00:40Save the date, Saturday, June 11th from 10 to 3 on the beautiful grounds of the LVIS
00:49community.
00:50Joining us today are the fair pair.
00:54We have Bonnie Pisorno and Pam Cataletto.
00:58They are sisters, they are the co-chairs of this fabulous event and they are going
01:03to share with us the makings and the details of the upcoming fair on June 11th.
01:11Welcome ladies.
01:12Welcome.
01:13Thanks for having us.
01:14It's a pleasure.
01:16I thought we would start out by asking you to share with us the mission of the Ladies
01:22Village Improvement Society.
01:25Well since 1896 we have been going strong and we started out by wanting to keep the
01:31dust down in the village on the village streets.
01:34So we got a group of ladies together and got a wagon to wet the streets.
01:40But since then we have blossomed into many areas.
01:44But most importantly they're, I would say, two.
01:48Which are?
01:49They really are the beautification of East Hampton and the education of our students.
01:57We also include preservation because we, you know, would like things to continue and we
02:02love our beautiful village and our town and our area and we wanted to continue that way.
02:08Yes.
02:09Well you preserve the landmarks as well and all the elm trees and just all the beauty.
02:14Right.
02:15In terms of scholarships, that goes to the high school students?
02:19High school students.
02:20In fact, I'm on that committee and I've just read 47 applications and we give out 24 scholarships.
02:30Some are, they're all great scholarships in today's world, you know, any little bit helps
02:37for these students.
02:38But any high school student who went to can apply and so those will be announced at the
02:44end of, in the beginning of June.
02:47So we're excited.
02:48That's terrific.
02:49And?
02:50We also have a scholarship for a returning person, a turning woman who has probably raised
02:55her family and, you know, wants to, you know, better her education and, you know, get a
02:59better job and we pay, they apply at a certain time of the year and we help a, you know,
03:06an older woman trying to, you know, do better.
03:10Return to work.
03:11Right.
03:12That's great.
03:13Now, both of you have been with the Ladies Village Improvement Society for over 30 years
03:19or so.
03:20Yes.
03:21Yes.
03:22What would you say makes this organization so vital, so robust, and so successful, frankly,
03:31in all that you do?
03:32This is going on for over 125 years and you are strong.
03:36Well, all of the women who join, they find a place to be and to help the community and
03:46they, you know, they help each other, but yet it's for a greater good.
03:50And I mean, some people who are older and might not have, you know, family, they make
03:57a family at the LVIS and we're always looking for volunteers.
04:01So, you know, come on down and just say, I want to help you.
04:05And we would love it.
04:08But it's a terrific organization.
04:10We started out doing a Coke booth on the Mulford Farm, oh, I would say in the early, well,
04:1740 years ago.
04:18Yeah.
04:19Late 70s.
04:20And our kids, they would be helping us, you know, and now they come with their kids.
04:26So it's such a tradition and you go every year and everybody comes back, they're bigger,
04:33you know, they have family and it's just a fun time.
04:38It's really, it's great.
04:40Great.
04:41Now, membership.
04:42How does one become a member?
04:44To become a member, you have to really just make it known that you would like to join
04:49us and then that we do ask you to volunteer for a couple of years and there's a bit of
04:54a process.
04:55But we would, you know, we welcome women who would like to, you know, help their community.
05:02It's a great thing.
05:03And I think it meets your needs at different times.
05:06When I first joined, I was teaching and they had meetings on Monday afternoon and it, you
05:12know, just at the end of the day, it was like, oh, a meeting.
05:15But once I retired and I, you know, Pam said, oh, let's go and look at sort things in the
05:24basement.
05:25And I went there for an hour and I went, well, this is not my forte.
05:28But then I got into books and I'm the assistant chair in the book department and we have awesome
05:37books that we, you know, sell.
05:40And I think everyone can find what they would like to do and there's so many things to choose
05:46from.
05:47That's right.
05:48And you have the cookbooks.
05:49We have cookbooks.
05:50This one from Florence Fabricant and LVIS members, recipes, celebrity chefs.
05:55Yes.
05:56I have two recipes in that cookbook, so I'm one of the chosen.
06:01How nice is that?
06:02Great.
06:03I did not make the cut.
06:04Okay.
06:05Speak to us about donations because I've read that people do in the community drop off art,
06:11furniture.
06:12It's incredible, the donations.
06:14I mean, our shops are, besides, the shops and the fair are really ways that we earn
06:23our money to, you know, support the causes that we do, the scholarships and the trees.
06:28And what we do is we have shops in our home and we have men's clothing, women's clothing,
06:37books, an annex, which includes all kinds of, you know, glassware.
06:42We have some very high-end novelties, and then we have furniture.
06:48If you would like to donate because of people's generosity, we do have to ask people to call
06:53and make an appointment, and those are done through the office, and you can call 631-324-1220
07:02and make an appointment because, you know, we would love to just say, oh, bring it in,
07:07but we can't because, you know, we have to store these things.
07:12And then, you know, in books, for instance, we meet once a week, a group of us.
07:16It's 8.30 in the morning to sort through probably 25 boxes of books.
07:23You know, some are moldy, which we wish people would have thrown out, but, you know, we find
07:27these wonderful gems.
07:30But it's a process of, you know, going through it, but that's how we make our money.
07:34That's incredible.
07:35And if you think about what a community East Hampton actually is, and LVIS is, when you
07:41think about people donating, you know, works that they have, books, furniture, and yet
07:49also the volunteerism and the membership.
07:51Right.
07:52And then the people come in and shop, and, you know, really, it's a full circle.
07:57And it's fun because you can find things like someone's going to a prom, and there'll be
08:02a prom dress, or there'll be a tuxedo.
08:05You know, they try to help everybody, and so there's always, you know, different things
08:10for everyone.
08:11Right.
08:12If you're looking for something special, like in furniture, you'll say, you know, I'm looking
08:15for an end table or something, you know, keep your eye out.
08:18Here's my name.
08:19And, you know, they're so cute about following through.
08:22And it's just a great group of people, you know, the paid staff, as well as the volunteers.
08:27It really takes a village to run that.
08:29And we are at 95 Main Street.
08:32We're right next to Herrick Park, and we're right there.
08:35You can come park there, come over.
08:37Our shops are open Tuesday through Saturday, and it's a great place.
08:41That's great.
08:42And the shops will be open on the day of the fair.
08:45They will be.
08:46The fair is from 10 to 3, as you had mentioned, but the shops will be open until 5 that day.
08:51So they'll be open and staffed and ready, willing, and able.
08:57Okay.
08:58Before we get into the discussion of what this year's fair will entail and be able to
09:03showcase, I thought we would take a look back at 2017 and see what the fair was like at
09:11that time, which will give us an indication of what we can all look forward to.
09:16Jodi, let's take a look at the video.
09:19The 121st year of the Ladies Village Improvement Society Fair, right here at Main Street in
09:25East Hampton.
09:27It's that time of year, L-V-I-S Fair.
09:34The ladies show you how you do it, how you do it.
09:43As the people walk and say hello, say hi, say hi.
09:50Would you like a tasty hot dog?
09:53Please buy it.
09:56Please buy it.
09:59121 years we've planned to make it the best fair in the land.
10:06Cakes, lemonade, cool hats, play land too.
10:12Take a deep breath and here's what you can do.
10:17As the people walk and say hello, say hi.
10:22Would you like a carousel ride?
10:25Please ride, please ride.
10:28Silent auctions, off the hook.
10:31Come inside for a good old book.
10:34Homemade salads taste good as they should.
10:38Listen.
10:39As the people walk and say hello, say hi.
10:43Come on in.
10:44Hello.
10:45Oh yeah.
10:46Would you like a homemade fruit tart?
10:48Please buy.
10:51There's so much more to do.
10:54We just named a few at the East Hampton L-V-I-S Fair.
11:02Okay, I'm Marianna Mars.
11:05I'm the general manager of the L-V-I-S.
11:07This is my 13th fair.
11:09I supervise the staff.
11:12I put out fires.
11:14Today is all about putting out fires, and this whole week just troubleshooting.
11:18I guess I'm chief troubleshooter.
11:24I have a punch list that's several pages long, and I start in January.
11:31I start applying for permits in January, and I just got our food department permit approved three days ago.
11:39I order a lot of the supplies for the fair.
11:41We have to order all our food.
11:42We have to order about 2,500 pounds of ice.
11:45I make sure that it's here.
11:47Our fair is really put on by our volunteers.
11:56Hi, I'm Patty Ferron.
11:57I'm head of the silent auction for the L-V-I-S Fair.
12:01I've been a member since the 70s, and we are very proud of what we do.
12:07The fair is one of our big money raisers, and our mission is for education.
12:13We just gave out $140,000 in scholarships to local students.
12:201896 was the first fair, and I think that we've never had rain on fair day.
12:26This is supposedly a perfect day for us because it's overcast, and this means people don't go to the beach.
12:32So they're here, and they're pouring in all the entrances, and it looks like they're spending money,
12:37which is wonderful for us because this is truly our largest source of event revenue,
12:45and we'll be able to fund a lot of scholarships and trees and landmarks with all of this money that comes from the community.
13:03I know there are golfers out there, and even though today is actually a nice day for golf,
13:10we don't have the blazing sun, and the rain didn't come.
13:14We have some pole to stop this rain.
13:17L-V-I-S managed to keep it from coming.
13:21I think that we're a group of people who want to do the best for our village and our town,
13:27and to come in and to shop, we have wonderful, you know, a thrift shop, a bookstore that's fantastic.
13:34We have used furniture. There's just a lot to offer, and to come in and share.
13:39I mean, they've been doing it 121 years, so we're just little people here,
13:44but it takes a village to make this a success, and for all the good that the L-V-I-S does
13:50and just on and on, and keeping East Hampton beautiful.
13:53L-V-I-S, join us, ask us, because so many people think it's a closed little organization, but we need everybody.
14:51That was very special.
14:53So my first question is, are you going to sing at this year's fair?
14:57Oh, no, that was just a one-time performance, so we're going to have to save it.
15:02Really? Well, I'm in the voting booth for, I'd love to see you perform again this year, because it would be great.
15:07Well, I wouldn't plan on it.
15:09I think that was hers. We've been doing this six years now, so I think that was the second year or something.
15:15It was really meant, the meeting before the fair, the general meeting that we have,
15:21we would sing or I would write poetry or whatever.
15:25They asked us for that particular taping to do that, so we don't really sing at the fair.
15:30Okay, well, that was very nice. That was lovely.
15:32Well, thank you. Thank you. Good.
15:34Well, let's talk a little bit about the fair.
15:36First of all, when do you start planning?
15:39Planning has started. It's down the wire now, but we have changed the date.
15:46Last year was our first. It had always been at the end of July.
15:50And last year, because of the pandemic and the cancellation and not knowing what,
15:57how many people we were allowed to have, if we had to have temperature taken or, you know,
16:02it was just a very peculiar time.
16:04And so we decided that we would change the focus a little bit and do a plant sale,
16:09which we've always had. But this year we started with annuals and things.
16:13So we decided that in June would be a great time.
16:16And it worked out to be such a fabulous day.
16:20Everyone really enjoyed it.
16:22The weather wasn't so brutally hot, and it was just great.
16:26So we're a little off on our schedule.
16:30And so we have started, and we have our booths are ready to go.
16:35Our house is ready.
16:36We are going to this year have food trucks, and they will be there.
16:43We will have an ice cream truck.
16:45We have all-day music, which makes it such a fun time.
16:48And, you know, people are going to be there.
16:50We're going to have a lot of fun.
16:53Tom and Lisa from Shelter Island.
16:55They're a five-piece band.
16:56They're terrific.
16:57Oh, that's great.
16:58And we also have a hot dog booth, and that's manned by the LVIS members.
17:02That's a pretty much people go there every year and go,
17:06this is my first and last hot dog this year, you know.
17:09And it's very cute.
17:11And so we're going to have a lot of fun.
17:13We're going to have a lot of fun.
17:15We're going to have a lot of fun.
17:17We're going to have a lot of fun.
17:20And Playland.
17:21Tell me about Playland.
17:22Well, Playland this year, we've geared it towards the younger children.
17:26We have a fabulous gal, Trish Erickson, who is chairing it for us this year,
17:32and we're having lots of carnival-type games.
17:34And it will be free for the children, which I think will be terrific.
17:40And they will be selling popcorn and cotton candy,
17:44so that makes it kind of fun.
17:47So that makes it kind of really a fun atmosphere.
17:51And there will be face painting and these games and there are prizes to win.
17:56So I think they will have a great time.
17:59And also, it's free to the children this year for the very first time
18:04because we have so many wonderful businesses who are donating cash
18:09so we can take care of the expenses, which is great.
18:14You still have to buy food and everything,
18:16but it's a wonderful thing for parents with a lot of kids to come and enjoy.
18:25And we also are going to have a bucket.
18:28We're going to have buckets.
18:30This is indicative of the carousel.
18:32They're beautiful.
18:33Yeah, you can put your toys in them or your blocks or your gardening toys.
18:38I've got Main Beach over here.
18:39Yeah, or towels.
18:41And we also have some homemade potholders.
18:44These are the 12-inch.
18:45These are larger than what you made as a child.
18:48And you've created these.
18:50I have created them.
18:51I spend my winters bucketing and making potholders for the good of East Hampton.
18:59Let's talk about shopping.
19:00What are the types of things that people can purchase at the fair?
19:05Well, there's going to be a vast array of flowers, annuals, and perennials,
19:10so come and get those.
19:11There'll be East Hampton Fair, which is locally made crafts and art and jewelry.
19:19And we have vintage clothing.
19:21We have chances.
19:24We also have our big silent auction.
19:27And what is entailed with the silent auction?
19:29Patti Farron and her committee of extraordinary women get these wonderful gifts
19:35and prizes that you bid on silently.
19:38In fact, it's going to go online May 1st.
19:43And it's set up as a bid.
19:45It's set up as a bid, right.
19:47And there's everything from sports to recreation to entertainment.
19:54They have Yankee tickets this year.
19:56They have golf packages for some of the East End's most beautiful
20:03and sought-after golf clubs.
20:06So there's a variety for everyone, and so that is silent auction.
20:12There was tickets for Saturday Night Live as well.
20:16Yeah, there were.
20:17You know, I don't know.
20:18This year I haven't.
20:19I think you can start looking at it now, and the bidding starts.
20:22There are some I know where you can pay for it immediately, but some are bids,
20:27and so go on the website and check it out.
20:30It's certainly interesting.
20:32Right, and vintage clothing, that's always a popular item.
20:34And we also have toys, slightly used toys that members
20:39or, you know, community members donate, and we save those up,
20:43and then we have a special area for that, and near Playland,
20:47so, you know, no one misses it.
20:50And so it'll be a great day.
20:54Great, and how many members and or volunteers are involved
20:57in making this day happen, generally speaking?
21:01I would say hundreds.
21:05It's hard to say because there are some people who do, you know,
21:08little works behind the scene, and then there are others who, you know,
21:13who are there and really spend their time.
21:15But we want everyone to, you know, participate and help
21:19because it's really our main fundraiser for the year.
21:25So it's important to all of us to, you know, to participate in some way.
21:30Yes, and you had mentioned that high school students can,
21:34if they volunteer, they can get community service.
21:37They can, and all they need to do is they can contact LVIS,
21:41and we will keep a list.
21:44But Trish Erickson, who I had mentioned before for Playland,
21:47is a teacher at the high school, so if you are in high school
21:50and you need to volunteer, you know, contact her.
21:55Or in the middle school, you can just, you know, let it be known
22:00and they'll tell you who to talk to.
22:02Because you have to graduate with community service hours.
22:05Sure, and that's a wonderful thing.
22:06That's great.
22:07It's a fun thing, too.
22:08And it's a great way for them to gain community service.
22:10It's such a fun event, such a great day.
22:13Is there anything in particular, personally,
22:16that you might be looking forward to at this year's fair?
22:20Well, I love it because my family that's scattered
22:23comes usually for the weekend, and so that's always a special time.
22:28And each person has their, you know, their little nook and cranny
22:32where they want to go.
22:34So it's just great.
22:36It's just a beautiful day.
22:37It's just a beautiful day, yeah.
22:39And Bonnie, yourself?
22:41You know, we're sisters, so we think alike.
22:45But, you know, usually all of our family gets together
22:48at dinnertime after the fair, and we talk about how much fun it was,
22:52and everybody does what, you know, they like to do,
22:55and there is something for everybody.
22:57So come along and see you on the 11th.
22:59That's right.
23:00It's a vibrant day.
23:02East Hampton is a vibrant community,
23:05and preserving the beauty of East Hampton is vital,
23:10and that's what this fair really is,
23:13a great day for keeping that going
23:16and keeping the preservation, the beauty.
23:18I mean, you keep the commercialization out.
23:21The signage is out, and East Hampton just remains.
23:27We are watchdogs.
23:28Yes, yes.
23:29You know, for 125 years.
23:32Beautiful.
23:33Yeah, yeah.
23:34Well, thank you very much, ladies.
23:36It's our pleasure.
23:37Thank you for having us.
23:38Thank you for having us.
23:39It was fun.
23:40This was great.
23:41We will see everybody on June 11th, 10 a.m.
23:43It starts.
23:45And thank you to the ladies, to Bonnie and to Pam.
23:49Thank you to LTV and everyone.
23:53Up next, we have shock from West Hampton Beach.
23:58Stay tuned.
24:00Everyone have a great day.