Villagers raise their glasses
to pre-St. Patrick's Day celebration
By JESSE
DUNSMORE Times
Herald •
March 13, 2010
As the Watertower Grill
in Lexington filled up
Friday evening, co-owner
Vingenzo Cellitti said he
didn't know the answer to
a "good
question:" Why hasn't
Lexington had a pub crawl
before?
"Shamrocking in
Lexington," the
village's first-ever pub
crawl, appeared to be a
hit. Cellitti said his
business was better than
usual by 7:30 p.m.,
although the Watertower is
more of a restaurant than
a bar.
Terry Nolan, pub crawl
coordinator and owner of
the Irish Rose in
Lexington, said the
village is very
"seasonal," and
isn't used to offering
events during the colder
months of the year.
But Nolan, a founder of
Celticfest in Port Huron
before she moved her
business to Lexington last
year, said she thought
Lexington was a good
setting for an event like
this.
Cellitti said he wasn't
worried about people
getting out of control
during the pub crawl.
"Everyone's good
people up here; everyone's
having fun. No one's out
to be malicious," he
said.
Residents seemed to
agree.
Kimberly Bizon, 40, and
Kay Shanty, 49, of
Lexington said they were
in a group of 17 that
would ride the
complimentary buses
through all the stops on
the crawl. The pair,
outfitted in flamboyant
green accessories, had a
designated driver to get
them home at the end of
the night.
"We're playing it
safe," Shanty said.
Steis's Village Inn was
packed with people, many
of them proudly wearing
gear that would be
inappropriately green on
any other day.
Terry Helmond, 37, of
Croswell sported a soft,
two-foot-tall green- and
silver-striped top hat
with shamrock shapes on
it. Helmond was his
group's designated driver.
"I just make sure
I get everybody home safe.
I probably have more fun
than they do, because I
get to watch all them
being idiots," he
said of his friends.
Steis's manager, Bill
Wilson, said the inn was
as packed as usual on a
Friday, but patrons seemed
more festive.
"We had a crowd
early. ... I think (the
crawl) brings a more
joyous atmosphere,"
he said.
Adam Buschbacher, owner
of Smackwater Grill and
Brewmasters Pub, both
stops on the eight-stop
crawl, said he expected
70% more business than
usual by the end of the
night.
"There's a lot of
people in town organizing
events, but it's all been
in the season we've been
accustomed to, May to
December," he said.
"I thank Terry Nolan.
Now we're almost a
year-round town."
