CRANFORD, NJ — It was a good day to be a rubber duck on Sunday, Oct. 9, when Hanson Park Conservancy’s 11th annual Rubber Ducky Derby took place at Sperry Park in Cranford. On this sunny fall day, hundreds were in attendance as 1,500 numbered rubber ducks in a variety of colors were released over the waterfall at Sperry Park. Prizes donated by merchants were given to the first dozen ducks to cross the finish line. This annual spectacle is eagerly anticipated by many throughout Cranford, particularly the children.
“It’s one of the events that little kids always look forward to,” said Linda Livelli, a trustee of the Hanson Park Conservancy and the chairperson of the Rubber Ducky Race, in an interview with Union County LocalSource on Friday, Oct. 14. “It’s a lot of fun. We estimate we probably get 400 people (in attendance). We always coincide the duck race with the fall street fair. We sell 1,500 ducks. We figure probably a third of the people who buy ducks come to the race.
“So the kids line up on the side of the river and watch,” Livelli said. “It takes about 15 to 20 minutes.”
The finish line is at the North Union Avenue Bridge. All rubber ducks are collected at the end of the race and reused the following year.
Ducks were available for purchase at Periwinkle’s Fine Gifts & Home
on North Union Avenue in downtown Cranford and at the Cranford Canoe Club on Springfield Avenue in Cranford. The race has been known to sell out. All proceeds benefit ongoing maintenance and educational programs at Hanson Park, 38 Springfield Ave. All race winners have been contacted.
“Hanson Park is a park in Cranford,” said Livelli. “Hanson House sits in the park. It was donated to the township by Dr. Carl Hanson. He was a pediatric physician, and, for some reason, when he died, he left the house to Cranford. Cranford started using the house, and different groups used different parts, but no one was taking care of the park, so the conservancy was formed in 2004 to take care of it. The Cranford Chamber of Commerce did it the first year and found out how much work it is, so they turned over the race to the conservancy.
“So the original members of the conservancy were doing all the work themselves, pulling out weeds, taking care of the lawn,” she continued. “The conservancy has done all these projects since its inception. We put in a butterfly garden, which still exists today, (and) a rain garden — a little path of rocks that winds through the park and is environmentally effective; it’s really aesthetically pretty. It’s where all the rain goes in the park. There’s an amphitheater that’s basically made of tree stumps. The little amphitheater is called the Woodlands Theater.
“There’s a formal garden that can be rented out for weddings,” Livelli said. “There’s some wetlands that we just kind of take care of, too. We did find an old brick stove or fireplace, and that was uncovered and restored.”
Having such a wonderful, green place in Cranford has proved a boon for the township, one that Livelli said many residents take advantage of year-round, particularly on nice days.
“It’s a pretty decent-sized property,” said Livelli. “Any day that you sit in the park, you’ll see people walking on the trails and relaxing and looking at the river. The township uses the house for different groups. In the winter, they have a winter bazaar, and the garden club comes in to sell their wares.”
The park’s history has fascinated many people, including descendants of the former owner.
“Dr. Hanson had a son and a daughter, and the son, Kurt, came in recently and toured it,” Livelli said. “He had his daughter with him, and it was a lot of fun for them to look at the property.”
The duck race is perhaps the most anticipated event of the year for the park.
“The duck race is our biggest fundraiser,” Livelli said. “The Cranford Canoe Club participates by lending us the canoes. We get the Boy’s Club involved. The county commissioner helps us, as does the county (Department of) Parks and Rec.”
The park’s neighbors have also gotten involved with taking care of the park and with the duck race itself.
“The Hanson House is across the street from the Canoe Club,” said Livelli. “The property is pretty big. It’s pretty deep.” She said next door is Springfield Park Manor condos, which she said went up in the late ’70s and early ’80s. “We recently transferred all our boxwood to the area that borders the condo complex. They were just so enamored with this that they became a sponsor.”
There are platinum, gold and silver sponsorships for the park.
Other businesses have contributed, too.
“The Cranford Canoe Club is run by Ralph Circelli,” Livelli said, and sells some of the ducks. “Elaine Moffitt, who owns a nice store called Periwinkle’s (Fine Gifts & Home), she sells about 650 of our ducks. … She doesn’t make a dime. She’s been doing it the entire time. We bring ducks to her, she sells them, and then we bring her more when she’s running low. We start selling around July or August, and everyone knows she sells them, and the rest are sold by the trustees. I am a trustee; my mother is a founding trustee. She’s more of an honorary trustee now, as she’s 82.
“This was the first year we partnered with the (Cranford) Chamber of Commerce,” Livelli said, adding that there will be other events offered by Hanson Park Conservancy as well.
“The Great Pumpkin Carve Out is held in Hanson Park,” said Livelli, adding that Cranford’s own Jersey Central Art Studios is the host. “It’s Oct. 22. It starts at night. We are a sponsor. The other sponsor is the Cranford Jaycees. It is a contest. There is one contest for the kids, one for the teenagers, an adult category and then there’s usually a movie at night. They make the park into a stroll.”
The pumpkin-carving contest is a free event open for all ages. Pumpkins can be dropped off on Saturday, Oct. 22, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Hanson Park. People can come view the carved pumpkins on lit garden paths from 5:30 to 9 p.m. that night. Cash awards will be presented for the funniest, scariest and most original carved pumpkins.
This year’s duck race was not without unexpected moments of excitement.
“A doll fell in this year,” Livelli said, and had to be rescued. “It belonged to a little girl.”
In the end, the Rubber Ducky Derby went off without a hitch, pleasing those in attendance, particularly the lucky few who won prizes.
“Prizes are usually merchant gift cards or regular Visa gift cards,” said Livelli. “The grand prize is a $250 gift card.”
And did the race make a difference? Livelli insists it did.
“We raised enough money to pay for most of the park maintenance,” she continued. “The township mows the lawn, and they’ll purchase the rocks and sometimes mulch, but most of the park is our maintenance.”
Photos Courtesy of Linda Livelli