Imagine Forestville President Aimee Rogers welcomed the crowd at 6 p.m., Thursday, surrounding the island that divides Main Street in Forestville. She said, “This is a big day. I can’t believe it’s finally happening.”

Rogers, while noting that the process has been challenging, spoke to how close the projects were to the hearts of the Imagine Forestville Board and many others in the community.

“We’ve been waiting to have this event,” Rogers said. “From one thing after another, it’s a godsend that it happened, finally. We are so blessed that so many people showed up, and we were given a beautiful day after all the rain. Everything just fell into place.”

Last fall, Imagine Forestville received a $20,000 grant from the Chautauqua County Department of Planning and Development for the various projects, which Imagine Forestville took on through various members. Rogers, Carol Woodward, and Kim Woodward led the way, with help and support from the entire close knit community of Forestville.

More than 30 members of the Forestville community were on hand to witness the unveiling of a new “Welcome to Forestville” mural on Main Street in the hamlet of Forestville.

“We have so many wonderful volunteers that have made it possible,” Rogers said.

It was Carol Woodward who led the way with the clock, which now stands tall in the heart of the hamlet. The clock can be lit with various colors, similar to the Brocton Arches, as a way to draw more attention to the new community fixture. Carol Woodward pulled a sheet to reveal the clock to a group of approximately 30 guests. Her smile spread across her face as she revealed the clock after she spoke to the importance of the moment and the hard work to make it happen.

After the group posed for a photo to celebrate the moment, they all crossed the street to find a large white sheet covering a building wall. After Rogers introduced the second of three unveiling sites, Kim Woodward then spoke about the process of securing a mural on the wall at 8-10 Main Street, right in the heart of the hamlet.

“Thank you for coming out tonight to celebrate some changes in Forestville,” Kim Woodward said to the crowd.

Kim Woodward designed the leaves on the mural, which was hidden behind sheets as she spoke. She also designed the waterfall and fruit to celebrate the hamlet’s connection to its surrounding agriculture.

Carol Woodward, left, and Aimee Rogers, right, look out at a crowd that gathered in downtown Forestville on Thursday evening for the unveiling of a new clock.

Kim Woodward credited Stacey Mierzwa for helping with securing the site, as well as preparing it for painting. After thanking everyone who was involved in the process, Kim Woodward invited the group to help pull down the sheets covering the mural. After taking a few seconds to admire their hard work, the whole crowd huddled around the mural for a group photo.

Finally, the crowd took another short walk down the street to visit a historic horse trough, which was repurposed to house a garden outside the hamlet’s popular spot, Tavern on the Mall. Kim Woodward was overwhelmed by emotion as she again thanked everyone for their support and detailed the process of making Imagine Forestville’s vision come to life.

Making an impact in Forestville is nothing new to the community’s dedicated volunteers, as the Forestville Hiking Trail has grown in recent years and the Forestville Farmers’ Market was so successful in its first year back that it will continue into October. Thursday evening was just another example of how Forestville comes together in ways that far exceed what many small hamlets its size would be expected to do.

After all three unveilings, Rogers reflected on the evening. While the crowd gathered behind her to enjoy refreshments and waited for her to join the celebration, Rogers said, “What a community. We are so blessed. It takes my breath away, really.”