It's been decades since the mansion at Harkness Park has seen women arriving in flapper dresses with peacock feathers in their hair and men in top hats and tails dancing to big band music and sipping on rum runners punch but that was the scene on Saturday.
The Gatsy Gala at Harkness Park transported people back in time to the roaring '20s, and attendees really embraced the opportunity to put on the Ritz. People came from all over Connecticut for the chance to dance to the Swinging Dick Campo Orchestra, dine on duck, and generally drink in the decadence of a bygone era.
Honored guests included State Representatives Melissa Ziobron and Betsy Ritter, Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Projection Commissioner Daniel Esty, Master of Ceremonies William Stanley of L+M Hospital, Waterford First Selectman Daniel Steward, and Friends of Harkness Park Christopher Callahan.
The event was both a fundraiser for the Friends of Harkness and a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the state's parks, of which Harkness Park is one.
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