The streets of downtown Harrison were lined with red and white balloons on Sunday, May 15, identifying the dozens of local businesses who participated in A Taste of Harrison, an annual fundraiser for the Harrison Public Library.
According to Dave Donelson, who serves on the library board of trustees and is president of the Harrison library foundation, the fundraiser, which was being thrown for its fourth time in the past five years, has been consistently successful at raising money.
“It’s an important fundraiser because libraries always need extra money, especially the Harrison library,” Donelson said. “We’re fully funded by the town, but for extra programs, extra hours and things like that, we need extra funds, which is what the public helps us do.”
Donelson said local residents have been very generous to the library in the past; a recent $4 million renovation of the Harrison Public Library received 50 percent of its funding from 500 private donors living within the town.
In addition to the proceeds the library collects from the fundraiser, the event also gives local businesses the opportunity to showcase standout dishes to prospective customers.
One such location, 273 Kitchen on Halstead Avenue, gave out samples of its fare outside the restaurant. The food is Mediterranean made with local ingredients, served in small dishes but bigger than tapas, according to general manager Christopher Creedon.
“Business has been really great, because people have been really open to the concept,” he said.
Another participating business was Retro Café, also located on Halstead Avenue, which replaced the Harrison Donut Shop about a year ago. The restaurant was allowing participants to sample a few items from its new menu.
Retro Café owner Hossain Ahmed said the restaurant’s orange chicken in particular had received a lot of positive feedback.
Although 273 Kitchen and Retro Café are new to the area, other participating businesses were already well-established staples of the town, like T-n-T Lunchonette, located on Harrison Avenue, which has been owned by Theresa Spagnuolo for the past 24 years, and Emilio Ristorante, a family business on Colonial Place, which was established in 1979. Sergio Brasesco, the owner of Emilio, said his mother makes the restaurant’s pasta dishes herself, which were served at the fundraiser.
Participants over 21 were able to sample some drinks to wash their food down with, courtesy of The Harrison Wine Vault and The Craftsman Alehouse, both located on Harrison Avenue.
The Harrison Wine Vault sampled several types of wine, while The Craftsman Alehouse sampled beer from their taps.
All of the Craftsman’s beers are American, and most are locally brewed. In fact, Jack Abbey, one of the beers on tap, brewed in Framingham, Massachusetts, was created by three alumni of Harrison High School.
Because more than 30 businesses in downtown Harrison participated in the event, many of which do so on a consistent basis, Donelson said he was grateful toward the Harrison business community, and said A Taste of Harrison’s success comes from the library’s commitment to giving back to the town through events and programs, which has created a mutually beneficial relationship.
“The Harrison community is very supportive of us,” Donelson said. “And it’s very gratifying for us to see because it shows that the town’s support for the library runs deep and extends throughout the population of the town.”
