| FEBRUARY 1, 2012 -- When Henry Ouimet walked into Walsh's Market on Meriden Road, he was sad to see a sign saying the Connecticut State Grange was holding a meeting to discuss the future of its Wolcott facility, where membership had dropped to an all-time low.
He attended a meeting with state officials from the agricultural society this summer. He was the only local person there.
"Basically it had whittled down to a handful of people, and they lost interest," Ouimet said. "It sort of atrophied away."
With the help of the State of Connecticut Grange, Ouimet has assembled a team whose goal is to revive the local chapter. Otherwise, the Wolcott Grange, a staple of Ouimet's and hundreds of residents' lives, might close for good.
The grange hall, at 313 Bound Line Road, was built in 1909. It has a kitchen and convention hall that was once used for Boy Scout events, dinners, banquets and club meetings. The property is owned by the State Grange.
Ouimet and his team's goal is to restore the Wolcott Grange to its former glory. He said other granges that had similar problems retaining their membership had to shut down. Wolcott's turnaround could be a model of success.
"The (state) grange is very, very happy we're trying to revitalize it," Ouimet said. "I guess in the past, some of the granges have been discontinued for the same reason as ours, and none of them have been able to rebound."
Ouimet joined the Wolcott Grange in 1965, when membership was booming. He continued donating to the club even after he left to study forestry at University of Connecticut and moved to Naugatuck.
Until recently, he donated to the local chapter.
He noticed that letters asking alumni to pay their dues started coming later each year, then not at all. That's when he became concerned something was wrong.
Ouimet has so far recruited 12 people to join the newly reformed Wolcott Grange, including six from the Cheshire Grange. Also, he's attracted the interest of former alumni now living in Vermont and Massachusetts who have fond memories of their times in Wolcott.
The group was popular decades ago when Wolcott was a vibrant farming community. Since then, its members have either gotten too old to continue running the organization, lost interest or moved on to other activities, Ouimet said.
The new Wolcott Grange is for anyone who wants to get involved in community service — not just those with a background or special interest in agriculture, Ouimet said.
There are also active granges in Cheshire, Prospect and Oxford, as well as a number of smaller groups in Litchfield County. |
