West Hartford Center Days are June 23-26, and include many special events this year.

By Ronni Newton and Joy Taylor

The streets of West Hartford Center will be jumping from Thursday through Sunday at the annual Center Days. Most of the merchants extend their businesses onto the sidewalk, and great savings are to be found on virtually everything.

This year, however, there is much more to do than “shop, dine, and stroll” – with two exciting activities bookending the festivities.

The four-day event will kick off with a formal fashion show on Thursday evening, bringing the pages of the most recent issue of West Hartford Magazine to life with formal wear styles from Oscars TUX and Argelia Novias BRIDAL that are perfect for weddings, galas, and any fun and formal affair. Fashions from BK&Co. and Dressed to the Nines, as well as accessories from Ten Thousand Villages, will also be featured.

Oscars TUX will be giving fun “swag bags” to the first 150 people in attendance on Thursday night. Bag to include a bow tie and cuff link and stud set, and other information.

Several four-legged models will also be part of the fashion show – modeling the latest styles from Toy Dog Accessories at the Beadoir.

Models (the human ones) will show off the latest elegant hair styles from BLO West Hartford.

The fashion show will be held on the Town of West Hartford Showmobile stage, which will be set up on the corner of LaSalle Road and Farmington Avenue on Thursday, June 23, and will run from 6-8 p.m.

Admission is free, and there will be refreshments courtesy of Hartford Baking Company.

A crepe “cookoff” will take place at the launch of the fashion show. Celebrity crepe chefs [Editor’s note: I understand I have been nominated as a contestant, despite my complete lack of crepe-cooking experience!] will show off their skills on the La Petite France Crepe Cart which will be parked in front of the showmobile.

More than 150 high-powered Italian sports cars are expected at the 16th annual Concorso Ferrari & Friends. Photo credit: Ronni Newton (we-ha.com file photo)

The 16th Annual Concorso Ferrari and Friends is a fundraiser for Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, and patients are also direct participants in the “Parade of Kids.” Drivers and their vehicles (Ferraris as well as Lamborghinis, Maseratis and Alfa Romeos) will meet in West Hartford Center at 8:30 a.m. Sunday, “parade” out to the Connecticut Children’s Medical Center facility in Farmington at 9:45 a.m., and “parade” back to LaSalle Road with patients in the co-pilot seats at 10:45.

The Concorso also includes a driver and VIP lunch at noon, music, judging, and a silent auction. Indy car driver Lyn St. James will be a special guest this year.

At 3 p.m., listen for the “Drivers start your engines” command signaling the end of the event and the choreographed departure of the sports cars.

“We are very pleased to have Concorso Ferrari & Friends returning to Lasalle Road. Over the years this awesome event has raised over $1 million for Connecticut Children’s Medical Center,” said Rosie DeRobertis from the West Hartford Center Business Association. “We are happy to once again be a sponsor and are looking forward to seeing the beautiful cars and the huge smiles from the children who get to participate,” DeRobertis said.

The Concorso Ferrari & Friends is open to the public, and is ideal for all ages. More details can be found on the event’s website. For information about volunteering, please email Summer Spellman at [email protected].

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