Thursday, August 1
Published weekly since August 2017
Manchester is fortunate to have two huge events downtown each year. On Thanksgiving we'll have our 83rd Road Race (it started in 1927 but took 10 years off because of the Great Depression) while Sunday's Cruisin' on Main will be No. 19 (it debuted in 2001, making the math easy). Like the Road Race, Cruisin' continues to grow and evolve, and there's plenty of info below about this year's carstravaganza. And speaking of anniversaries, OneManchester reaches a milestone this month. We will be baking a cake, blowing out two candles and, yes, making a wish.
  • It's Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. right Downtown
  • Rain dates are the next two Sundays (Aug. 11 and 18.)
  • Spectator admission and parking is free
  • Hundreds and hundreds of vintage vehicles (from 1987 or older) will be on display
  • Three radio stations on site (102.9 FM The Whale, Talk of CT 103.3 FM, and Radio 104.1 FM) as well as food trucks, bands and more.
  • Here's a preview by The Courant and another one by the JI.
  • Or just go to the Cruisin' on Main website.
Also This Week 
(Friday, Aug. 1 through Thursday, Aug. 7)
Friday (6-8 p.m.) -- Cruisin' Paint Night at Charter Oak
Friday (7-9 p.m.) -- Blues on the Rocks at the Band Shell
Friday,  (7:30-10 p.m.) -- Skylark City Concert at WORK_SPACE
Fri/Sat (7 p.m. each night) --- 'Willy Wonka' (a CAST production) at MHS.
Fri/Sat/Sun -- ‘The Dixie Swim Club’ opens at Little Theatre of Manchester (through Aug. 18)
Saturday (8 a.m.-12:30 p.m.) -- Manchester Farmer's Market at corner of Main and Forest
Sun/Mon -- Manchester Open at Manchester Country Club
Sunday (10 a.m.- 3 p.m.) -- 19th Annual Cruisin' on Main Street
Sunday (10 a.m.- 3 p.m.) -- Open house at WORK_SPACE
Monday (7-8:30 p.m.) -- Beatles Tribute Band  at the Band Shell
Tuesday -- National Night Out in Manchester
Wednesday (4:30-7:30 p.m.) -- Spruce Street Farmer's Market 
Wednesday (6:30-8:30 p.m.) -- WHODAT! (Jazz, Latin, Cajun, Reggae) at the Band Shell
Thursday (6 p.m.) -- MRC Track & Field Series at MHS
Thursday (6-7:30 p.m.) -- Nature Explorers program at Charter Oak Park
Thursday (6-8 p.m.) -- Mike Rau performs at Center Memorial Park (part of Beller's summer concert series)
 
Local golf is in the spotlight Sunday and Monday, then it's National Night Out.
ALSO:
MEETINGS:
  • The Board of Directors is scheduled to meet Tuesday at 7 p.m. in Lincoln Center.
  • A comprehensive meeting schedule is on the town events calendar.
LIBRARIES:
Next Weekend's Highlights
(Friday through Sunday, August 9-11)
Friday, 6-8 p.m.) -- Flower Power at Charter Oak
Friday, Aug. 9  (7-9 p.m.) -- Undercover (Oldies, Motown) at the Band Shell
Fri/Sat/Sun -- ‘The Dixie Swim Club’ continues at Little Theatre of Manchester (through Aug. 18)
Saturday (9 a.m.-1 p.m.) -- Boy Scout Troop 123 car wash at Community Baptist Church
Saturday (1-4 p.m.)  -- Family Pool Day at Salters Pool (sponsored by New River Church
Saturday (6-7:30 p.m.) -- Little Library Ribbon Cutting at Northwest Park.
Saturday (8 a.m.-12:30 p.m.) -- Manchester Farmer's Market at corner of Main and Forest
Sunday (2 p.m.) -- '1816: The Year with No Summer' presentation at Cheney Homestead
Further down the road

Saturday, Aug. 17 (10 a.m.-1 p.m.) -- K-9 Kerplunk Doggie Dunk at Globe Hollow
Friday, Aug. 23 (6-8 p.m.) -- 70th annual Peach Festival at 138 Main St.
Saturday, August 24 (3- 10 p.m.) -- Silk City Music and Arts Festival 2019 at Purnell Place
Monday, August 26 -- Manchester Community College fall semester begins
Tuesday, September 3 -- First day of school for grades K-5, Grades 7 and 9
Wednesday, September 4 --  First day of school for grades 6, 8, 10-12
Saturday, Sept. 7 -- MHS fall sports season begins with cross-country at Wickham Invitational. (For complete MHS schedule please click here)
Thursday, Nov. 28 (10 a.m.) -- 83rd running of the Manchester Road Race
Also: We've got more town and school district events and notes listed in our 'OneMan Central' log (and the town events calendar is another trove of information).  If we are missing anything, anywhere, just email b11jfarr@mpspride.org to suggest/contribute an item.
Humans of Manchester
Try this: Take the number of years you've lived in Manchester and multiply by 3. This is how many people (with a margin of error +/- 7) that you can expect to recognize in our 'Humans' gallery, which is on both Facebook and Instagram. 
CONFESSION

The equation immediately above is made up. But check out the gallery and you will absolutely, positively, probably recognize a lot of people.
School Stuff
  • There are two school nurse positions open in the district. You must be an RN. Apply online at www.mpspride.org. 
  • MELC is holding a town-wide 'Back to School' party at Waddell on Aug. 22 (5-7 p.m.) and lots (600) of children will be getting free supplies.
ALSO
In The News
The Journal Inquirer and Hartford Courant both have regular town news coverage (but monthly free-read limits). You'll also find stories in Manchester Patch. Published recently:
NEWSLETTERS OF NOTE:
(We gets lots of them and link to the latest of each)
Sports
... and speaking of baseball,,. fall Little League registration is underway (for softball, too). Check the OneManchester Sports Digest for links to all the local sports programs.
IM @ CSP
Imagine Main migrated to Center Springs Park this evening, and while the site was different, the vibe (music, vendors and more) was comfortingly familiar.
ONEMANCHESTER is compiled by Jim Farrell and Paul Ofria of the school district's communications office based on contributions from people and institutions throughout town. Jim, the district's communications director, can be reached at b11jfarr@mpspride.org or 860-268-6377.