This is going to be another one of those weeks when I wax poetically about how many great volunteers we have downtown. While you might be tired of me mentioning some of the fun folks I am lucky enough to work with, the truth of the matter is that I wouldn’t have much to write about every week if it weren’t for all the volunteers and various partnerships we have with local businesses and other organizations that keep our downtown active and vital.

For example, did you see the much anticipated Homecoming parade Friday? There were some real troopers on Main Street who braved the torrential downpour which occurred at parade time. And in true Sumner fashion, local business owners of the Berryland Café were on the sidewalk handing out free hot chocolate to loyal Sumner High School parade watchers supporting the activity.

And in preparing for upcoming events, it’s amazing how many businesses and organizations I can name that are involved in the process. Take Halloween for example; in addition to many of our downtown merchants, there are all the local car dealerships, the library and the food bank, not to mention the dancing scarecrows from Ascension Productions. And don’t forget, if you’ve been wondering how you might become a dancing scarecrow, everyone is invited to their final practice from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday in the gazebo at Heritage Park to learn their special abbreviated version of the “Thriller” routine.

We’d love to have lots of scarecrows on Main Street on Halloween and everyone is welcome to join the “thrilling” fun.

Thinking ahead, representatives from the Arts Commission, Rotary, Windmill Gardens, plus the city parks department all met in my office this past week to discuss upcoming Christmas decorations for the city. If you’re interested in helping put up the decorations this year, we’ll be putting up bows, lights and garlands early Sunday morning on Nov. 22, at 8:30 a.m. for a couple of hours.

We’ll meet at my office in Heritage Park and then fan out to spread holiday cheer.

And let’s not forget the community float that needs to get ready for the Santa Parade. And that’s easier said than done when it needs a new engine.

So volunteers Rick Sively, Jon Swanson and the Float Meister himself, Ben DeGoede, are busy with the mechanics of making that happen. Plus the Float Meister is trying to schedule a meeting to discuss the design for next year’s Daffodil float utilizing the 2010 theme, Carousel of Spring.

Heck, we’re not even finished with Halloween and he’s moving on to next spring.

I guess the moral of my story this week is that no matter where you look in Sumner, it’s easy to see our sense of community. We have a special recipe here of generous citizens, dedicated organizations and a lot of businesses who believe in giving back to the community that supports them.

When you mix them all together you come up with much anticipated downtown events and great businesses that make it really fun to spend some time in Sumner.