Every year the town of Hollis hosts Hollis Old Home Days, a celebration of the history of the town. Held every year at Lawrence Barn and its surrounding fields, there are games, booths, and many other fun family activities at the fairgrounds. This year, the iconic festival was held on Friday, September 14 and Saturday September 15.

Many Hollis-Brookline citizens attended the events of the weekend, including students, teachers, and families. Overall, the annual weekend was an enjoyable, family friendly event that included something for everyone. “[My favorite part] has to be the fireworks. It was like a grand finale,” said Melissa Burgher ‘22.

Lauren Grosse, an English teacher at Hollis-Brookline High School and class advisor for the graduating class of 2019, helped to run the senior booth at Old Home Days, where they ran a dunk tank, dunking teachers and students alike. After spending the day at the senior booth, she knew- without a doubt- that it was a success.  “We made a lot of money, and we had a lot of student, parent and teacher volunteers,” said Grosse.

The Green Group, headed by Amira Elfadil ‘19, is another group that had a booth at Old Homes Days.  The goal of Green Group is to make people aware of the benefits of recycling and promoting environmental consciousness. At Old Home Days, the club raised money to help with this goal by selling plant bulbs and baked goods. The booth was, “pretty successful” this year, explained Elfadil. Their profit was not surprising; the Green Group has been attending Old Home Days for a few years, and their booth is usually a popular fundraiser.While Elfadil is graduating this year, she hopes Green Group will attend next year’s Old Home Days, as it is their biggest fundraiser every year.

Other HBHS booths included the sophomore class table, who ran a face painting booth, and the junior class, who ran a “Pie a Junior” booth.

Any organization in town can set up a booth every year; booths are not confined to just HBHS- run clubs. For example, the Hollis Women’s Club sponsored an apple pie contest, and the Hollis Rotary Club ran a “Cow Pattie Bingo.” In this game, participants bought a section of a cow pasture hoping a cow would leave manure in their square, and therefore winning them the cash prize.

Attendees of Old Home Days agreed that this year’s event went quite well, and Grosse felt that many booths achieved their fundraising goals. She stated that she loved seeing how many people volunteered, something that helped the senior booth  succeed. Students and teachers alike enjoyed the events of the weekend, and are planning on attending next year. The dates for next year have not yet been announced, but it is sure to be another successful year for everyone involved.