A date to celebrate: Granville's 43023 Day festival to note calendar, ZIP code alignment
When Granville residents write the date on April 30, 2023, the numbers will seem familiar.
The date matches up exactly with Granville's 43023 ZIP code, and community members didn't want to this once-in-a-lifetime event to pass by without recognizing it.
As a result, the Granville Area Chamber of Commerce is holding 43023 Day on April 30 to celebrate the Licking County village. This year is the first opportunity Granville has had to celebrate such an event, as ZIP codes weren't implemented until July 1963.
"I'm hopeful that a lot of people come who might not know about all these different things that Granville has to offer," said Bryn Bird, a Granville Township trustee, whose family has farmed in the community for nearly three decades.
The free street festival will feature musical performances — mostly from Granville-based artists — from 12:30-8 p.m. on North Prospect Street, which will close for the day. Food trucks, including the Naughty Lobstah, the Tabouli Café, Weathervane Kettle Corn, and Harvest Pizza’s Pizza Trailer, will be there throughout the day. Local artisans and craftspeople also will have their works featured in a Made in Granville market area.
The event is a community effort, Matheny said, with the Granville Historical Society, Granville Public Library and Robbins Hunter Museum doing special activities during the afternoon. The Kiwanis Club of Granville is providing the stage and tents, while the Granville Recreation District arranged for Columbus band North to Nashville to perform as the headliner from 6-8 p.m.
With help from the chamber as well as the Granville Community Foundation, local artist Sarah Gray is leading an effort for Granville residents of all ages to paint their visions of what Granville will be like in 2123 on a special canvas. It will then be encased in a time capsule addressed to the community members of the future. The canvas will be located outdoors at 200 E. Broadway, outside CVS Pharmacy, during the festivities on April 30 from noon-3 p.m.
Granville resident Brian Edwards approached the chamber with the idea last year. Edwards is an alumnus of Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, whose ZIP code is 43022. The village and college held their own celebration last year on April 30.
"It's a great way to shine the light on Granville. There's only basically one community every year that can sort of take advantage of this day," Edwards said.
The Granville chamber got behind Edward's idea immediately.
"It just seemed an ideal way to celebrate some positives. Through the pandemic and other challenges in recent years, (there) haven't always seemed like there's so many opportunities to enjoy and have fun and celebrate us," said Steve Matheny, the chamber's executive director. "Nobody could find fault, I don't think, with the idea of celebrating our little town. So it seemed natural to get behind it."
The event will showcase all the great sides of Granville, Bird said, especially as the community grows.
"There's a lot — a lot — of new people moving into Granville. I feel like when I go anywhere, I meet families and it's like every family I meet just moved here," she said. "I think it's a great opportunity for us to also share all the amazing parts of Granville with so many new people who are moving in."
If you go
For more information about 43023 Day, visit the Granville Area Chamber of Commerce Facebook page at facebook.com/granvillechamber.
mdevito@gannett.com
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Twitter: @MariaDeVito13
This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Granville celebrates date, ZIP code aligning with 43023 Day
