Norwood Hosts Norwood Day 2020 to Support Local Businesses

NORWOOD, MA — Norwood released video of its successful new rendition of Norwood Day 2020, which tied into Small Business Saturday.

Norwood Day is usually held annually in September and features family activities such as live local entertainment, games, prizes, sidewalk sales and more. As the traditional Norwood Day event usually brings more than 10,000 people to the town, the event was canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

It was decided to tie Norwood Day 2020 in with "Small Business Saturday," which the Friends of Norwood Center group has been organizing for nearly a decade.

“We knew we just couldn't bring that many people together like we normally do,” General Manager Tony Mazzucco said. “There was definitely a sense of loss here in the community among the town staff and volunteers. We decided on an alternative that would tie in with ‘Small Business Saturday’ as a way to encourage people to support all the things we love about Norwood.”

On Saturday, community members were encouraged to eat local and shop local as well as wear something local, by spending the day in their Norwood Mustang gear or gear supporting a local business or organization, or "do good locally" by giving to a local charity like the local food pantry or a civic group like Rotary or a PTO.

The event not only served as a celebration of the town, but also supported businesses suffering as a result of the pandemic.

“Hopefully people recognize all the businesses that are on the strip [in downtown Norwood],” said Limey’s Pub co-owner Anthony Jeannetti. “Especially as the holidays are coming around. It gets people away from places like Amazon and Target and gets people to shop and dine in their own backyard.”

Community members were encouraged to post online reviews of the local establishments that they visited on Saturday. The photos were posted on social media using the hashtags #wevegotthisnorwood, #thisfallshopsmallnorwood, #norwoodday2020 and #norwoodrocks.

People who shared photos online of their participation in Norwood Day 2020 with the hashtag #norwoodday2020 were eligible to receive a special edition Norwood Day 2020 button, which can be used for admission to Norwood Day 2021. Many local businesses also had buttons available.

Norwood Day was sponsored by the Norwood Recreation Department.