By Lisa Carolin
Hundreds and hundreds of people visited and participated in the 11th Annual Chelsea Spring Expo on Saturday, April 22 at the Washington Street Education Center.
“I’ve had a lot of nice conversations and am getting good exposure,” said vendor Marilyn Jachalke, who was representing Global Marketplace.
“We’ve got it down to a science,” said Chelsea Senior Center Board Member Annette Bragalone. “This is easy.”
There were a total of 145 vendors representing businesses, the school district, the farmers market, and Chelsea Senior Center activities like the Knit and Crochet and the travel group.
“We’ve had steady traffic of people of all ages,” said Trinh Pifer, executive director of the Chelsea Senior Center. “It’s fun to see the mix of ages.”
There was the SRSLY KidZone that offered games and arts and crafts, and the Wildlife Safari, which featured a variety of animals that interacted with the audience like an armadillo, a ground hog, and a toucan.
The main attraction in the front lobby was the senior center bake sale, and an American Flag Folding Ceremony took place at noon with members of the Veterans Honor Guard of Washtenaw County.
Decorating the walls behind some of the vendors was artwork from the Chelsea School District Student Art Extravaganza. Those were not for sale, but plenty of other items were, and there were plenty of giveaways.
Behind all the planning and organization were members of the Chelsea Senior Center, clad in identifiable red tee shirts, and always available to help and answer questions.
