Schools

Martha Jones Marketplace to Return With Fresh Faces, Holiday Spirit

This year's event will feature 10 Westwood residents and 30 new vendors.

It's nearly that time of year again. 

No, not Thanksgiving. (Not yet, anyway.) 

It's nearly time for students and parents to gather at the for the annual pre-Thanksgiving Martha Jones Marketplace. 

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"We have people from New Hampshire, Maine," said Jenn Burkhart, the event's coordinator. "It really has extended out of Massachusetts. "We're really becoming an established event, which is great." 

The event kicks off at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 17 and runs through 9 p.m. About 60 vendors will be on hand this year, with half of them being new. All proceeds from the event benefit Martha Jones PTO-funded programs. 

Find out what's happening in Westwoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Moreover, about 10 Westwood residents will also hold vendor booths this year, a boost from only one current resident last year; residents from other surrounding communities made up the bullk of the event.

Nearly 70 vendors and hundreds of attendees from in and around the Westwood area , browsing through baked goods, gift items and enjoying a variety of activities.

Athletes on the Westwood High School girls track teams will be lending a hand this year, helping to clean up and set up booths for vendors. 

"They kind of serve as helpers," Burkhart said. "They load and unload cars. We couldn't do it without them."

Patrons of the marketplace will be able to purchase a cookbook that was on sale last year; the books were assembled by a number of Martha Jones parents and comprised recipes and photos of students at the school.

Martha Jones fifth graders, meanwhile, will return to host a bake sale as a fundraiser in support of their end-of-year celebration and class gift. featured cookbooks 

"We really try to get the kids involved in earning the money," Burkhart said. 

The event is held every year on the Thursday before Thanksgiving. Having it take place on a weeknight before the holiday gives organizers and patrons a chance to shop locally and enjoy a night in Westwood. Similar events in surrounding communities, Burkhart said, tend to take place on the weekends or closer to the holidays in December. 

"We don't even want to compete," Burkhart said. "This is the hometown feel. It really supports local, and it's a family event. Having it on a Thursday night is definitely conducive."


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