By Krystal Smalley
ksmalley@wbcowqel.com
Take the community-centered idea of Candlelight Christmas, throw in warmer temperatures and sunny days, and you will get one of the newest events for the summer: First Fridays Bucyrus.
“First Fridays is a way to bring the community together and get everybody to shop local,” said Ashley Spencer, administrative assistant at U Be Dazzled, one of the businesses driving the idea of First Fridays. “It’s also a way for business owners to mingle with other business owners. The whole goal is to promote ‘shop local’ and get everybody downtown.”
Spencer repeated one of the things Sue Logsdon, owner of U Be Dazzled, has said multiple times: “We have a really beautiful town that we should be proud of. This is just a way to make that happen.”
The committee behind First Fridays plans on showing off downtown Bucyrus from 5 to 9 p.m. this Friday in the inaugural event, which is themed Health and Fitness.
Not only are businesses hoping to draw in locals, but they’re also looking to entice the heavy lake traffic that travels through downtown on Friday evenings.
“Hopefully, if someone is passing through that day they are going to see all these people walking downtown, all these businesses set up,” Spencer added. “We’re hoping that each business – we’ve asked them to get creative and set up some sort of activity . . . to draw in, whether it be the children or the customers in general.”
Businesses that would not typically be open until 9 p.m. on a Friday are staying open a bit longer if they are participating in the event. The YMCA will be on hand, Fitness Warehouse will be providing demonstrations, and Avita will be setting up a food demonstration. Rensselaer Street will also be blocked off for food vendors.
Businesses that aren’t located right in the heart of downtown will be setting up displays in front of other stores that won’t be open for First Fridays. Entertainment will be located at three different areas along the street and a kids’ area will also be set up.
First Fridays will span from Kennedy Lane at the corner of North Sandusky Avenue and Mary Street to Morning Glory down by Bucyrus City Hall.
Spencer said they’re trying to be inclusive with all the businesses, even if some can’t exactly put their wares on sidewalk display.
“We’re trying to at least get people to mingle. Even if it’s not people passing through, if it’s the locals coming up – there’s some businesses that people (who) live here have never walked in,” Spencer said.
First Fridays will be held twice more this summer with an Art Walk on July 1 and a picnic with police and firefighters on Aug. 5.
For more information on First Fridays, make sure to follow the event on Facebook. Any food vendors or artists wishing to set up for the event can contact Logsdon or Spencer of U Be Dazzled at 419-617-7667.
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