Aimee Symington ran the music for Davidson Elementary PTO's cake walk during Town Day 2011. (DavidsonNews.net file photo)

Davidson celebrates its 41st Town Day and the 175th anniversary of the town on Saturday, May 5, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., with a festival of fun, community service, food from local restaurants, and entertainment on the Village Green. The day starts with an early morning 5K road race, this year to benefit Community School of Davidson. And there’s even a Town Day T-shirt for sale. Town officials are using the day to promote a variety of official programs, from pet licensing to bicycle safety.

Town Day began in 1971 when Mayor Tom Sadler issued a proclamation designating a May “Clean Up” week, which wrapped up in a Town Day on May 15. At the time, Mayor Sadler said the town wanted to support the Davidson Community Council, a group of concerned citizens leading an effort to clean up trash and debris around town, to improve the town’s appearance and to promote a sense of self-improvement and closer ties among citizens.

SPARTAN 5K RACE

Town Day will kick off this year with the Spartan 5K race, sponsored by the Community School of Davidson. The race begins at 8:30 a.m. [The Town Day race in the past was the Day Care Dash, a fund-raiser for Davidson Cornelius Child Development Center. The center this year will have its 5K and 1 mile fun run on May 19, followed by a Farm to Fork “Taste-nic”]

The Spartan 5K is one of a series of races this year called Running for Our Communities, or ROC. Local race directors have banded together to support local nonprofit organizations through their events. See March 19, 2012, “New 5K/10K racing series planned to aid nonprofits.”

POLICE AND TOWN PROGRAMS

From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Davidson Police Department will have a booth on the Village Green where residents can register their pets (the town is stepping up education and enforcement of its updated Animal Control Ordinance), get information on the Vial of Life emergency medical information program, sign up for the town’s eCrier email distribution list or the Connect CTY phone list and more.

(To find out more about what documents you need to bring with you in order to register your pets, please visit http://www.townofdavidson.org/DocumentView.aspx?DID=1877.)

Also at this year’s event, the town Livability Board will team up with The Spirited Cyclist to sponsor free bicycle safety checks, and the Davidson Historical Society will have various booths to promote the new town history book “One Town, Many Voices,” by Davidson College Archivist Jan Blodgett and Davidson history professor Ralph Levering. It’s also the 175th anniversary of the found of Davidson College and the Town of Davidson.

New this year is a Community Shred Event from 10 a.m. to noon in the police parking lot next to Town Hall. Residents can bring documents that they would like to shred to a mobile paper-shredding truck.

Town Day T-shirts will be $10.

FOOD AND ENTERTAINMENT

The day’s entertainment lineup will be provided by a variety of local groups, including Acrofitness and Dance Davidson. Davidson-area restaurants such as Flatiron Kitchen and Taphouse, Ben & Jerry’s, Hot Diggette Dog will also provide food for sale, and the Davidson Presbyterian Church will have fried fish, slaw, French fries and wings available for purchase. The Davidson Farmer’s Market will also be open during its regular season hours from 8:00 a.m. to noon.

Also new this year are Town Day T-shirts, available for $10 at the Town Hall booth on the Village Green. All proceeds from the sale of these shirts will help fund the Parks & Recreation Department’s Scholarship Fund.

More information about Town Day is available on the Town website, www.townofdavidson.org/townday.

OTHER EVENTS IN DAVIDSON

Town Day isn’t the only event in Davidson on Saturday.

The weekly Davidson Farmer’s Market runs from 8 a.m. to noon next to Town Hall, 216 S. Main St.

There’s also a day-long series of musical performances at The Birdsnest and Summit Coffee on Main Street, in tribute to the late Davidson College professor Robert Whitton, who died last year after being hit by a car on Concord Road.

And Saturday afternoon at 5:30, Hopewell Baptist Church on Davidson-Concord Road hosts an outdoor free “Concert at the Corner,” with fun, food, face painting and other kids’ activities. Bands include Arms of Mercy, Jeremiah Eighteen, Coca Cola Inspirational Praise Band.

TOWN DAY LIBRARY BOOK SALE

Town Day also brings another tradition: the annual Davidson library Town Day book sale, which actually continues after Town Day. All types of books and media for all ages are available, most at 25 or 50 cents each. Doors open at 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 5. And the sale is open during regular library hours next week. Cash and checks with ID accepted only.

Hours are: Saturday, May 5, 10 am-4:30 pm; Monday, May 7: 1-6:30 pm; Tuesday, May 8: 10 am-6:30 pm; Wednesday, May 9: 10 am-6:30 pm; Friday, May 11: 10 am-4:30 pml Saturday, May 12: 10 am-4:30 pm. Davidson public library branch is on the Village Green.

More information about this week’s events in and around Davidson may be found in our This Week calendar, in The Guide.