Earth Day Festival Brings Together Newtown

Question: In making 5-pound laptop computer how much waste is generated?

Answer: 10 tons.

This was just one of the multiple-choice questions you had to answer correctly as you made your way successfully through the environmental maze at Saturday’s fourth annual Newtown Earth Day Festival.

Laurie Borst, owner of a local tutoring business and a first-time volunteer at the festival, generated sets of easy, medium and difficult maze questions to provide an educational challenge to go with the fun.

“I have a science background and I’m behind this 100 percent,” Borst said, referring to one of the primary goals of the festival -- to foster environmental education.

Festival marketing director Bill Buchler was likewise enthusiastic about the festival’s potential to provide educational enrichment as well as provide a forum for people involved in positive community activities.

Buchler said his hope is that "people can become aware of the power of one," in making a positive change in their community. The idea for the first Earth Day Festival originated from four like-minded individuals with a common interest --  Dan Holmes, Terrence Ford, Ben Roberts, and Buchler's wife Pam.

“We’ve got a good variety of involvement,” said Bill Buchler, gesturing toward the  booths of vendors, local schools, town associations and non-profits dotting the front lawn of Newtown Middle School, including Alteris Renewables, the designers of solar and wind power systems. “We’re pulling some energy off them.”

United Water, one of the event's major sponsors, sponsored a screening of “Living Downstream," a film that chronicles the impact of chemical runoff into the water supply and the potential threat to human health.

“It’s good for people to see we’re not just tree huggers,” Buchler said.

Gary Storms of the Newtown Lions Club was handing out small slips of green paper encouraging people to “keep it nicer in Newtown” by cleaning up litter on their street.

An adjunct to the Lions’ “Lose the Litter” initiative, Storms said, “If they stop by our table, we will give them free trash bags, vests and gloves.”

The Earth Day stage featured an all-day lineup of entertainment.

“This year we have a professional sound guy,” said festival master of ceremonies, Bob Brophy, who also performed with The Blue Yodels, one of six bands performing during the festival.

Other crowd pleasers were the Middle Gate School Chorus, who performed “Recycle Rap” and performances by dancers from Graceful Planet.