CORNWALL — With great optimism, it was dubbed the first annual Cornwall 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament. With a very respectable turnout and a lot of enthusiasm on the part of players and fans, it looks like it might actually turn into an annual event, and a popular one at that. The Cornwall Park and Recreation Commission sponsored the tourney. Director Rebecca Hurlburt suggested teams start training now for next year. The competition was tough — although everyone was there to have a good time and get a good workout. It should be said there was a nice trophy awarded.The trophy features a slightly smaller-than-regulation basketball, with the names of winning teams written on each section of the ball over the years. It will be on display at Cornwall Consolidated School, the official home of the tournament.The idea is credited to commission member Patrick Elias, who came up with it as part of what Hurlburt called a constant mission to broaden what Park and Rec has to offer. Hurlburt organized the tournament, with help from Kevin Riley and Rick Kearns in refereeing and overseeing the complicated process of an elimination competition.All six Region One School District towns were represented, with players coming from a total of about 10 towns — which was really inspiring.There were seven teams and 25 players. The age range was limited to 18 to 62; the average age on Saturday was 30. The hope for next year is that some women will come play, with coed and all-female teams to compete in their own divisions. The 2013 winning team was RHI, playing for Rizzotti Home Improvements, LLC, in Sharon. Teammates were Greg Rizzotti, Brian Hembrook and Matthew Worden.A few teams already play together, mostly on town recreation teams. But the majority were what Cornwall Globetrotter John Old called “a bunch of hackers.”“The hamstrings will be screaming tomorrow,” Old said.They were pretty serious — and often impressive on the court — playing 11-point games in the first round and then 15-pointers as they went through the elimination rounds. There were referees, but not a lot of rules. Only really blatant fouls were called, followed by a possession call; there were no free throws. Fouls, more often the result of intensity than, well, foul play, were often followed by an apology from the offending player. The day turned into a celebration of the sport. Youngsters found a free hoop when they could and played some pickup. Myah Baird, 11, wore her Park and Rec team uniform, practiced shooting baskets and rooted for her dad, Tom Baird, and the Globetrotters.Among the volunteer referees was Elias, who was overheard saying to players as he headed onto the court, “I’m old, so leave me alone out there.”
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Greg Fricke and James Boehmer, co-owners of Peggy Mercury in Kent, recently launched their first fashion line, “Imaginary Concerts.”
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Fricke and Boehmer are not there to stock their shelves with the same products customers find at standard makeup retailers. They’re there to help customers find what works for them. That usually means asking customers about themselves and learning about their beauty habits, skin, style and the way they like to present themselves. Fricke and Boehmer believe it’s their job to help customers bring out the qualities that suit them and determine what works best for their look.
So much of the Peggy Mercury world is about emboldening people to become more creative, and possibly bolder, versions of themselves. Some of this comes through the store’s creative collaborations with artists, designers and stylists.
It’s part of an ethos that encourages them and their friends to use the shop as a kind of laboratory, trying out new creative experiments without knowing how they might turn out. Whether in fashion, painting, fiber arts or photography, the projects almost always turn out marvelously.
A line of sterling silver charms they sell started as a small project by their friend Nolan Percival. In the beginning, the pieces were for close friends and loved ones. But Boehmer and Fricke encouraged Percival to get a little more serious about the project and create a whole line for the store. Today, it’s one of their top-selling collections.
Classic styles, bold colors, and creative concerts make up the “Imaginary Concerts” line at Peggy Mercury.Provided
“Imaginary Concerts” has the duo taking their own advice.
The project started as a way for Boehmer to connect with his mother, who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Taking old concert shirts from his own collection, Boehmer and his mother began cutting out the graphics with the idea that they would make a quilt together. Unfortunately, she died before they could complete the project in 2025. The pieces, which were ready for production, were put on the back burner as Boehmer and Fricke dealt with their loss and the whirlwind of projects that never seemed to cease at Peggy Mercury.
But the harsh winter of 2026 presented an opportunity to take some time and focus on themselves. Part of that meant revisiting and redefining the concert T-shirt project. This time, instead of looking to the warmth and comfort of a quilt, they turned to another passion — fashion.
Taking a page from their own book, they wanted to create something that felt comfortable to them. They took two disparate loves — one rooted in simple preppy style, with clean lines and classic silhouettes, and the other in the nitty gritty worlds of punk rock and pop — and blended them together to create something entirely new. Pulling from the staples of vintage Brooks Brothers and Charvet collections, they applied the graphic elements with bold stitching reminiscent of punk jackets of the ‘70s and ‘80s, but with a much more sophisticated air.
But the remixing isn’t just the pairing of prep and punk. The pieces are not canon. They take liberties with the realities of concert tours, combining one band’s dates with another band’s logos, mixing them all up until the reality is lost and imagination is the only truth.
Shirts from Peggy Mercury’s first fashion line, “Imaginary Concerts,” hang on display.Provided
Adding to the mix is an element of perpetual creativity. Art can be messy, both figuratively and literally, and many of Fricke and Boehmer’s artist friends carry evidence of their work on them at all times. As a nod to these tireless creatives, the duo added haphazard splashes of bright color, giving the line an even more distinctive feel.
For them, “Imaginary Concerts” passes the “Peggy Test.” The mythical Peggy Mercury is a fictional figurehead for the company, a character who thrives on creativity and change. The name, much like the clothing line, is a mixture of interests: Mercury is a planet, a deity and an elusive, transformative element, while Peggy is the wonderfully stylish and boundary-pushing Peggy Guggenheim.
Everything Fricke and Boehmer put in their store has to pass this test: Would Peggy Mercury approve? For their first collection, the answer is a resounding yes.
Peggy Mercury is at 9 Maple St., Unit 2, Kent.
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