Dedham Day Draws Thousands On Sunday

DEDHAM, MA - Thousands of people flocked to Dedham Day Sunday afternoon at Barnes Memorial Field to enjoy carnival rides, a barbeque and music in a celebration of community pride.

But the day's main attraction may have been Juliette the Cow and her counterpart. The two cows participated in a town tradition called a "cow plop." In this bingo-like event, part of the field was blocked off into 3,000 squares, on which people could purchase "deeds" for a $10 fee. The first cow to leave its mark behind on a person's square gave the owner a $5,000 award. Prizes were also awarded in the amounts of $2,500, $1,000 and $500, respectively, taking a load off of the winners' expenses.

As of 2 p.m., all of the plots nearly were sold out, which was historic for the event. Additional deeds needed to be printed up as the cows strutted their stuff without leaving their droppings behind for at least an hour.

One person who purchased a plot was U.S. Congressman Stephen Lynch, who toured the event with Town Clerk Paul Munchbach. He came home from the nation's capital to visit Dedham Day and Westwood Day the previous day.

"In the past, my father tried to win this for 20 years," Lynch said with a laugh. "He never came close."

Despite predictions of rain, the day turned out gloriously sunny, providing the perfect atmosphere for a day of fun.

"After the sun came out, everything started going great," said organizer Anthony " Ju Ju" Mucciaccio.

"My kids look forward to this every year," added Andrew Barton. "There's always a lot of great rides, and they get to see their friends."

The event transformed the field into a carnival, showcasing a variety of rides, inflatables and games such as a rock-climbing wall. Vendors sold ice cream, cotton candy, fried dough and other festival treats while the line for the barbecue spanned dozens of hungry families seeking ribs, hot dogs and hamburgers.

The event, organized by the Friends of Dedham Recreation, was designed to raise money for Recreation Department programming not funded by the town. It is now in its 30th year at a time when people year have been yearning to reconnect as the effects of the pandemic wane.

Maria Tierney of Norwood came out with her husband to enjoy the event with her grandchildren.

"My grandchildren live in Dedham," she said. "It is such a great time, and there are so many things to do. And it's great to get out with people again and be happy after all we've gone through. What a wonderful day."

Band Gig School of Music and Performance, located near the event site in Dedham as well as in Norwood, provided live performances as well as recorded music to keep people pumped up. Owner and instructor Nick Vecchio said he was excited for his students to perform before the local crowd.

In addition to private lessons on several instruments and voice, there is a program starting up there next month where young people can participate in a 17-week "join a band program" in addition to taking private lessons.

Five members from the summer session participated in a charity event the night before at the Victory Grille in Dedham. It benefited an organization called Rawkstars, which provides instruments and funding for lessons for kids that are musically inclined but whose parents can’t afford to get them lessons.

"The thing I love about music lessons is that there are never any kids there who don't want to be there," he said. "To me, the most important part is when I found out that music is still in their lives 20 years later."

Vecchio performed with several students, jamming to everything from Johnny Cash, Nirvana and Oasis.

Information and vendor tables dotted the sides of the field, offering residents a chance to learn about town initiatives as well as purchase handmade soaps and bath products, stuffed animals and other treats. Some young people took advantage of the face painting table while others visited an inflatable brain to learn about the dangers of drug use. Dedham Police Chief Michael D'entremont and his staff introduced children to Ruby from the K9 unit. Brazilian jiu jitsu performances from The Lab in Dedham also kept people engaged.

Lara Ondruch came all the way from Houston, Texas to display the inflatable brain.

"The Dedham Health Department brought us out to showcase substance abuse effects on the brain," she explained. "We're letting learn them know about that in a not-so-scary way but a fun way."

In about 30 minutes, nearly 100 people traveled through the Mega Brain.

"The kids see us from the parking lot and yell out, 'It's the big brain!'" she said. "And it's not just the kids either."

Town Planner Jeremy Rosenberger stood before whiteboards presenting the various goals for the Dedham 2030 Master Plan. A spinning wheel allowed people to randomly select goal areas to focus on and then place colored stickers on their priorities for housing, transportation, governance, public health and other areas.

"For me, Dedham's position makes it urban and suburban," he said. "I think it's one of the only towns with five highway access points - which can be a double-edged sword. We're hoping to get a lot of feedback on people's vision for Dedham."