The parking lot at the Community Oven in Hampton filled up fast Monday night. The crowd was not only hungry for some great pizza but also for a glimpse of the 2004 and 2007 Red Sox World Series trophies on display.
The Commissioner’s Trophy, as it was originally named, is presented each year to the Major League Baseball team that wins the World Series. The trophies are made of 30 flags that represent each team in the National and American Leagues.
The trophies arrived around 5 p.m. Monday. Fenway Ambassador LaShawn Streater and Security Supervisor John McDermott carried the treasures across the packed parking lot and placed them in a beam of sunlight on a table at the main entrance. The sunlight danced off the shiny flags as people lined up to have their photos taken standing as close as they could to the Red Sox’s pride and joy. The one rule that was made very clear and strictly enforced was, “Do not touch!”
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Monday nights at the Oven are Community Fundraising events. Each month, one local nonprofit is chosen to share in part of the restaurant’s proceeds and is encouraged to do raffles and provide information. September’s nonprofit is Amy’s Treat. Lenore Rogers, the president of Amy’s Treat, was thrilled to have this opportunity to not only fundraise but to spread the word about the work her nonprofit does.
“We’re dedicated to providing solutions to the day-to-day difficulties of living with cancer for the patients of the Seacoast Cancer Center in Dover," she said.
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Each week, Rogers brings a different theme to the event – this week was the Red Sox. The raffle table included a book written and autographed by Tim Wakefield, two autographed bottles of Red Sox Wine, collectible photos, gift baskets, and a team jacket.
Local artist Stacey Camire also volunteered her time, sketching anyone who could sit still for 10 minutes.
“I’ve always been a sketcher and interested in people, their stories, their faces," she said. She started doing sketches in public about two years ago and now has expanded to include parties, weddings, games... anywhere there are faces.
No one was really talking about the season the Red Sox are currently having, only that they were thrilled to have the trophies in town.
Joe Nault summed it up pretty well, “Hey, there’s always next year!”
