The cake isn’t fancy, neither is Hawley Day: Annual reunion brings together residents past and present

Last week my hamlet of Hawley celebrated its annual reunion, Hawley Day. The event is organized by the Sons & Daughters of Hawley. Now the town’s historical society, the group was founded in 1900 by former residents of the town who lived elsewhere and wanted to return to their former hometown, if briefly.

Today, it still attracts former residents and quite a few summer folk, but most of the people who attend are locals. The day begins with coffee and munchies and moves on to the Sons & Daughters’ annual meeting in the Hawley Meeting House (formerly the East Hawley Church).

This year’s meeting featured a few regular agenda items. The group noted the passing of several Hawleyites and formerly Hawleyites who had died in the past year. We listened to reports about the group’s finances and activities.

The Sons & Daughters try to honor someone who has contributed to the group at each Hawley Day. This year the honoree was Jane Marie O’Connor, a past president of the society who died earlier this year. 

Jane moved to Hawley in 1984 and threw herself into community events. During her tenure, the Meeting House building was stabilized, and a steeple was perched on the top. (The original steeple had blown off long ago in a hurricane.) 

These projects required fundraising ability, organization, and decisiveness. Jane had all three of those qualities in abundance. Her son Gabe Keenan sent a note calling Hawley Jane’s heart’s home. Her energy and creativity were and are missed.

There was a second honoree as well. Serra Root became the group’s treasurer in 2000 and has been working hard for the Sons & Daughters ever since. 

I tried to take a photo of Serra, but she is camera shy. She was completely surprised by the honor. Her plaque called her “the beating heart of the Sons & Daughters.” She is that and more.

A couple of unusual events added to the fun of the meeting. First, Hawley historian John Sears spoke briefly about Joseph Hawley (1723-1788), the Northampton resident after whom the town was named.

John explained that although Hawley declined to be elected to the First Continental Congress in 1774, he was nevertheless a leading political figure, influencing Revolutionary War leaders from our state like John Adams.

John noted that when Adams read Hawley’s words about possibly going to war with Britain to Patrick Henry of Virginia, Henry responded, “By God, I am of that man’s mind!”

After hearing about Joseph Hawley, Hawley’s firefighters presented a Fire Department T-shirt to another person with that surname, Neil Hawley. 

Hawley explained that he had always been told that he was descended from Joseph Hawley. He had written to ask the firefighters if he could purchase the tee; he is a retired firefighter from Springfield who still volunteers with the fire brigade in his second home in Connecticut. 

Firefighter and Selectman Hussain Hamdan explained that he and his colleagues had come up with the idea of inviting the retiree to Hawley Day to honor both his connection to Joseph Hawley and his service as a firefighter.

Another highlight of Hawley Day was the honoring of the oldest and youngest people in attendance, along with the person or persons who had traveled the farthest to attend.

Zephyr Bhargava-Sears, age 11, was the youngest present, and his family had come the farthest, from New York City. The contest for oldest person went to Kay Holt of South Hadley. (I’m always sensitive about age so I’m not revealing hers.)

Another annual competition involves identifying the family with the most members in attendance. In 2024, that was the Cox family; they were holding a reunion that weekend. This year, as the names above may indicate, the Sears family prevailed.

At the end of the meeting, Molly Pyle Stejskal played the elderly (but still vaguely tuneful) Meeting House piano as I led those present in singing “The Hawley Song.”

Written by Molly’s mother, Alice Parker, for the town’s bicentennial in 1992, the song enumerates landmarks all over town, past and present. The first verse talks about geographic formations and neighborhoods. The second mentions the town’s rivers and brooks. The third lists the former one-room schools.

The fourth and final verse, everyone’s favorite, talks about the variety of people in Hawley, past and present:

“There are old folks and little ones, / First farmers and newcomers, / Summer, winter, and all year round, / Living, dying, giving birth.”

Today, as Hawley’s population ages, we have more people dying than giving birth, but we continue to celebrate each life and each new baby.

The group adjourned to the Hawley Grove, the building across the road, where lunch was served by Sons & Daughters board members. Small Change, a band featuring Hawley descendent Dennis Avery, played in the sunshine as those gathered munched and caught up on neighborhood doings.

My contribution to the lunch was limited by the fact that I had committed myself to singing in church that morning before going to Hawley Day. I obviously wouldn’t have time to cook anything substantial between church and the Sons & Daughters’ meeting.

A board member suggested that I contribute a dessert, which could be prepared the previous day. Happily, it was cool enough to turn on my oven in the days leading up to Hawley Day. I made a cake. 

At this time of year, one of my favorite cakes is a simple fruit pound cake. The significant amount of butter in the cake makes it taste rich so it needs no frosting. Instead, fresh fruit makes the cake extra special. I used a mixture of peaches and blueberries. Feel free to add or substitute whatever you have on hand.

The cake isn’t fancy. Neither is Hawley Day. This annual event doesn’t need to be scintillating. Its charm lies in its old-fashioned nature and its capacity for community building. The same could be said of the cake.

Hawley Day Pound Cake

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) sweet butter, at room temperature

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 cups flour

2 cups seasonal fruit (plus a bit more if you like)

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt pan. (I found one in my kitchen shaped like a sunflower for seasonal charm.)

In a mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar, and beat until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, followed by the vanilla. Beat in the baking powder and the salt.

Toss a little of the flour into the fruit; then on low speed blend the rest of the flour into the batter until it is incorporated. With a rubber spatula, gently fold the fruit into the batter. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Set the pan on a wire rack to cool for about 20 minutes; then turn the cake out onto the rack and let it cool completely. Serves 10 to 12.

Tinky Weisblat is an award-winning food writer and singer known as the Diva of Deliciousness. Visit her website, TinkyCooks.com.