The 55th annual Holiday Bazaar is being held by Westford Academy’s Student Council (STUCO) on Saturday, Dec. 7 from 9:00 a.m to 3:00 p.m. The bazaar will be held on the first floor of the WA building as a way to celebrate the holiday season by allowing vendors, including WA clubs, to sell themed products and food.
The STUCO executive board members of the 2024-2025 school year are senior president Rachel Haley, junior vice president Lauren Flaherty, senior secretary Sathian Soman, senior marketing and publicity coordinator Karthik Babu, and senior community service coordinator Daniel Wang.
The general admissions to enter the bazaar will be $3.00, but admission will be free for children under ten years of age and for senior citizens. The doors will be open to artisans who are coming to the school to sell goods from their small businesses at 6:00 am to provide them with time to set up their stalls.
Members of STUCO and custodial staff prepare the building for the even the Friday before, Dec 6. Students’ shifts will start at 9:00 am and end at 3:00 pm; this time does not include time for cleanup, so many students will be staying later to wrap up their stands.
There will be approximately 200 small businesses and 30 clubs with a stall at the bazaar. Most small businesses are from Westford, however there are some from New Hampshire and all around Massachusetts. According to athletic administration assistant and Holiday Bazaar coordinator Danielle Mendonca, some of these businesses have been prepping for the bazaar all year.
“[The bazaar has] gotten to be a pretty big, well known event,” Mendonca said. “[…] It’s typically smaller items for the clubs, just because it’s easier for them to make and prep for. Instead of being an actual craft like the outside vendors, this is their hobby that they’ve been prepping for all year.”
This year, most vendors will be spread out through the biggest sections of the school: the gym and the cafeteria. However, some vendors will be located throughout the hallways including many of WA’s clubs. The clubs are going to be located in the guidance hallway and in the middle of the building with the exception of the language clubs, which will be selling food and drinks in the cafeteria. The layout will stay relatively the same as the years before.
Some notable events include the senior class’ silent auction, in which the seniors bid for an assortment of goods in a raffle, while the sophomore, freshmen, and juniors will be doing their usual apparel sales, like sweatpants, sweatshirts, and T-shirts. The clubs will mostly be selling smaller items, like stickers, pens, and bracelets.
“The bazaar really brings the whole town together and creates a sense of community in Westford,” junior STUCO member Maruthi Birudavolu said. “All of us in the student council take a lot of pride in being the ones to set it up, and even though it takes a while, seeing all the happy faces of students and families makes it all worth it.”
