Annual Cooler Middleboro Fair returns with energy saving help and larger-than-life dioramas
Vinny Miller, 7, tosses a stuffed animal into a target at the fourth annual Cooler Middleboro Fair on Saturday, March 21. Photos by Sam Tucker
A new addition to this year's fair was a inflatable globe which attendees could walk inside of.
Another larger-than-life inflatable diorama was a large whale, which attendees could also explore inside of.
Middleboro High School students Braeden Romaniecki, left, and Nathan Berube told attendees about their window-insert project they completed at the high school's Innovation Lab.
An insulation diorama is displayed at a heating assistance booth.
Organizers said hundreds of attendees came by the fair on Saturday, where a mix of family-fun events and energy saving information was offered.
Water quality projects from John T. Nichols Middle School students showed how Middleboro youth are engaging with area water quality issues.
The middle school students constructed small water filters out of empty plastic bottles, coffee filters and cotton balls.
Bones from various whales are displayed at the New England Coastal Wildlife Association booth.
Volunteer Doria Gedraitis teaches Noah, 8, and Cozy Chiuppi, 6, about the important role whales play in the ocean ecosystem.
Founder and President of the New England Coastal Wildlife Association, Carol “Krill” Carson, speaks to attendees at the association's booth which brought plenty of up-close ocean knowledge to the fair.
Vinny Miller, 7, tosses a stuffed animal into a target at the fourth annual Cooler Middleboro Fair on Saturday, March 21. Photos by Sam Tucker
A new addition to this year's fair was a inflatable globe which attendees could walk inside of.
Another larger-than-life inflatable diorama was a large whale, which attendees could also explore inside of.
Middleboro High School students Braeden Romaniecki, left, and Nathan Berube told attendees about their window-insert project they completed at the high school's Innovation Lab.
An insulation diorama is displayed at a heating assistance booth.
Organizers said hundreds of attendees came by the fair on Saturday, where a mix of family-fun events and energy saving information was offered.
Water quality projects from John T. Nichols Middle School students showed how Middleboro youth are engaging with area water quality issues.
The middle school students constructed small water filters out of empty plastic bottles, coffee filters and cotton balls.
Bones from various whales are displayed at the New England Coastal Wildlife Association booth.
Volunteer Doria Gedraitis teaches Noah, 8, and Cozy Chiuppi, 6, about the important role whales play in the ocean ecosystem.
Founder and President of the New England Coastal Wildlife Association, Carol “Krill” Carson, speaks to attendees at the association's booth which brought plenty of up-close ocean knowledge to the fair.
MIDDLEBORO — Hundreds of attendees came by the fourth annual Cooler Middleboro Fair on Saturday to have fun and find out how to help the environment and make life more affordable.
The annual fair brings together family-fun activities with informational booths and professionals in environmentalism and clean energy to deliver a day of support and excitement around all things sustainability.
Kimberly French, the board president of the Sustainable Middleboro nonprofit, said the day aims to attract all ages to guide the community to a sustainable future.
“It’s just really important to have something to engage children, but we also can talk to the adults about energy efficiency measures they can take and how they can get there financially,” French said.
Sustainable Middleboro is a volunteer-run nonprofit that focuses on heating and cooling assistance, outreach and education. The fair is cosponsored by Sustainable Middleboro, the New England Coastal Wildlife Alliance and the high school’s environmental YESS Club.
“It’s a chance for people to come and learn about ways of making their homes more energy efficient, learn about other environmental related issues and to have fun,” said Sustainable Middleboro board member Alan Melchior.
The free fair held at Middleboro High School included area heat pump and solar panel contractors, booths on energy saving rebate programs and various environmental organizations.
The event also showcased environmental projects created by Middleboro youth.
Booths included area Girl Scouts’ plans to conserve the Nemasket River, water filtration projects from John T. Nichols Middle School students and the recent window-frame insert project of the Middleboro High School Innovation Lab.
Sophomore student Braeden Romaniecki and his Innovation Lab classmates constructed custom-fitted window frame inserts for Middleboro homes struggling with heating efficiency, as part of a recent heating-assistance program with Sustainable Middleboro.
The lab is the high school's dedicated engineering space, and is run by teacher Tony Chiuppi.
“It feels really good to help out the people in the community that need help with heating and saving money too,” Braeden said.
Fellow Innovation Lab classmate Nathan Berube said the project taught him about “real world examples on how to save money, and just be helpful” to the town he calls home.
“It felt like I was doing something useful,” he added.
Chiuppi said students constructed the wooden window frames and double-coated them in plastic to mitigate heat loss and lower heating bills during wintertime. Chiuppi said students learn hands-on shop skills in the lab, but the project offered students something unique.
“When they do a fair like this and their product is out on display, [students] see the connection between what they did in the shop and the community,” he said. “That is going to change their perspective in the future.”
Middleboro resident Peter Miller attended the fair with his family on Saturday, and said they came out for his kids to explore the life-sized whale diorama from the New England Coastal Wildlife Association.
He said they paid a visit to a handful of heating and cooling info-booths as well while his 7-year-old son Vinny explored the fair.
“It was actually like being inside of a real whale,” Vinny said. “It kind of has like the body parts of a human. It has the lungs, the stomach and the heart. It's so cool.”
Junior Middleboro High School student Jax Dolan volunteered at the fair and said it’s important for people his age to get involved with sustainability because their futures will be impacted by water and air quality issues.
“The upcoming generations will have to deal with all of the pollution,” Jax said.
Jax’s mother Lindsay Dolan said the fair is great to engage youth in these important conversations on limiting environmental impact and saving money along the way.
“The fact that the young kids are really into it and all these projects are amazing. We just love seeing it every year,” Dolan said.
Doria Gedraitis, an area grad school student volunteering with the New England Coastal Wildlife Association, taught young fair attendees about the important role whales play in the ocean ecosystem.
She said whales act as a "nutritional" pump for the ecosystem, since their waste provides food for microscopic organisms that are foundational to the ocean’s food-chain. She said getting youth excited about environmental education is important to enact change when they become adults.
“Any piece of an emotional connection is really important to create informed, interested citizens who really love and care about the environment,” Gedraitis said.
