Blissfield's bicentennial year gets underway with Saturday kickoff fundraising dinner
BLISSFIELD — You don’t celebrate a 200th birthday all too often, so when you do, make it count.
That’s what Blissfield is planning to do throughout 2024 as the village will be marking its bicentennial this year with community events and programming that celebrates its past and looks forward to the future.
“Throughout the year, kind of everything we do will be attributed to the 200 years celebration,” Danielle Gross, Blissfield Village administrator said.
The first of the upcoming bicentennial events is on Saturday, Feb. 10, when the Blissfield Bicentennial Committee hosts its Bicentennial Kick-Off Fundraiser with doors opening at 6 p.m. and a celebratory dinner being served at 7 p.m. All the action will take place at Blissfield American Legion Hall Post 325, 451 High St.
Being a fundraiser, there is a cost for people to attend. Individual tickets are $50 and couple tickets are discounted at a rate totaling $90. There are a limited number of tickets still available, Gross said. As of Thursday afternoon, at least 20 tickets were still up for grabs.
Tickets can be purchased on Saturday up until noon at Blissfield State Bank, 204 E. Jefferson St., which is a main sponsor of the fundraiser. If available, tickets also can be purchased Saturday evening at the door of the event, Gross said.
In addition to the ticket costs, raffles, auctions and other cash-raising activities will take place during Saturday’s kickoff. All monies raised from Saturday’s event will go toward funding Blissfield’s main bicentennial celebration scheduled this summer for July 27-28. Details about what that celebration weekend will look like will be released soon, Gross said.
The village is celebrating the 200th anniversary of when it was founded by Hervey Bliss, Blissfield’s first settler and namesake. Bliss also was the first postmaster. Blissfield’s post office opened March 28, 1828. The village was not officially settled until 1826 and was incorporated in 1875.
The Bicentennial Committee began formulating plans for this year’s celebration offerings at the start of 2023, Gross said. Village residents, nonprofit organizations and village representatives all have had a hand in the planning stages.
Committee members include Deena and Eric Remley, Barb Abenzeller, Gary Holmes, Connie Seiser, Jackie Bates, Joy Wonderly, Frank Seely, Barb McHenry and Laura Nichols.
“We have a committee of people who, from the start, have been leading the planning and taking care of things,” Gross, who has been Blissfield’s administrator for nearly two-and-a-half years, said. “... It’s amazing to see all of this come together. Thankfully, we have people who are passionate and are proud of their community.”
Last summer, the village uncovered a 50-year time capsule buried in Clara Bachmayer Park that contained videos, photos and other memorabilia from Blissfield’s 150th celebration held in 1974. Some of the videos will be shown this summer and the recovered items will be on display.
More than 100 family food recipes have been submitted for a village-wide recipe book in honor of the 200 years. The cookbook project is being led by the Blissfield Historical Society. When all the recipes have been compiled and the cookbook is together, it will be sold as another fundraising venture. A new mural in downtown Blissfield that was completed in October by local artist and business owner Barrett Dvorsky also recognizes the village’s past, present and future.
A new music festival, Music in the Park, will be added to Blissfield’s calendar of summer events, Gross said. Other recent highlights for the village include receiving funds from a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Capital Facility grant, starting major infrastructure replacement projects and the revising of village ordinances.
Blissfield’s master plan, which looks at opportunities for improvement within the village and looks at zoning ordinance amendments, also was completed, Gross said. The master plan sets six main goals consisting of:
Celebrating Blissfield’s character and identity.
Providing safe and reliable multi-modal transportation for all ages and abilities.
Providing inclusive, accessible and attainable housing for all.
Enhancing the environment quality of the community and ensuring Blissfield remains sustainable.
Driving sustainable and diverse economic growth.
Providing quality infrastructure and transparent governance.
“The plan then further goes into strategic action items to achieve the main objectives of the village,” Gross said.
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Saturday's kickoff event will feature live music from local singer/rocker Cat Canyon, who will perform from 7 to 10 p.m. Every woman in attendance will be presented with a long-stem rose. The dinner will feature barbecue pulled pork from K’s Fine Food and Drink of Lyons, Ohio, along with the traditional sides pairing with barbecue food. Blissfield’s Borchardt Brothers Market will provide a fried chicken option to the menu. Drinks and desserts will be available.
Updates to the plans for Blissfield’s 2024 bicentennial year will be posted and shared on social media, Gross said. People can check out the Blissfield Bicentennial 2024 Facebook page, the Downtown Blissfield Facebook page or the Village of Blissfield Facebook page.
— Contact reporter Brad Heineman at bheineman@lenconnect.com or follow him on X, formerly Twitter: twitter.com/LenaweeHeineman.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Blissfield's bicentennial year gets underway with fundraising dinner
