Despite deluge, Community Days a success

 Ken Heney grabs a cooler as he and some fellow Knights of Columbus members dismantle the tent Monday afternoon that served for this past week's Palmer Township Community Days.

 Nearby, workers with Pottstown Tent Rental pull apart the tent at the main stage on the basketball court as remnants of the festival begin to fade away.

A few yards away, an entrance to Fairview Park used by vendors shows signs of the deluge caused by Sunday's storm.

 "It's a mud hole now," said Palmer Township Supervisors Chairman Dave Colver. "But I would consider Community Days a huge success. Very successful."

 The five-day event, which started with a movie night Wednesday, got through some rainy forecasts, but couldn't weather the storm Sunday.

 "The rain started at 3:30 p.m. Sunday and struck hard and fast," Colver said. "We had to call the second band off at 6:30 p.m. But Friday and Saturday nights were picture perfect. It was great for those five nights. We just lost the last four hours."

 Colver said the park will be fixed up and back in great shape before you know it.

 Heney, meanwhile, was trying to work around the mud in front of his tent.

 "Saturday (which featured fireworks) was like a record breaker," Heney said. Heney said the Knights of Columbus tent sold about 10 cases of hot dogs (around 1,200 hot dogs) and about 600 sausages.

 "I think we fared quite well," Township Supervisor Bob Lammi said. "The rain cut into the festivities. It hit with such intensity. A lot of people came and the non-profits, who keep their earnings, did very well."

 For Diane Grube, who has planned, coordinated and overseen Community Days for the past 15 years and been involved with the festival for its 28 years, now is the time for a much-needed break.

"I'm getting a very long rest," Grube said Monday. "Community Days was wonderful. I loved doing it."

 Grube could not tell how much turnout was each day of the festival, but she stated that Saturday was especially packed because of the fireworks.

 "There were thousands of people," she said.

 She said the new tent on the basketball court really helped offset the weather.

Grube said the festival committee will hold a wrap-up meeting later this week.

 But she's already thinking of improvements for next year's festival.

 "We had all positive comments about the big tent, but we're going to make it bigger next year," she said. "We will also change up the tables and chairs in there."

Grube said she's a "little down" that this year's festival is over. "But people are already asking me about next year," she said. "We'll start planning for next year in a couple of months."