Occidental Oriented by Gino Gaffney - April 2018
Well folks, in the last few hours I have seen hail, bright sunshine and pouring rain. Welcome to another wacky west county Spring neighbors. By the time you are reading this the vernal equinox will have already passed. Days and nights are nearly even, though the day is making a steady push forward this time of year, adding a few minutes to its side as every trip round the sun transpires. As the pace of the plants and sunlight quickens so does that of the humans it seems. In other words there is a lot going on in these parts and I best get to it quick.
Fools Rush In April 7 - On Saturday April 7th is the annually eclectic Fools Parade through Occidental, an absolute hoot for all who attend. The gathering begins at Noon and parading starts around 1pm from the Occidental Center for the Arts in Harmony Village on the North end of town. The great throng of foolishness will saunter up to town and back to the OCA. There will be music and milling about all throughout the afternoon around town. The only requirement to attend is a sense of foolishness, though costumes are strongly encouraged. Please carpool. While you are in town stop in a business you never have, or an old fave. Grab a beverage or a bite to eat from one of our great establishments. Spread the love and foolish vibes.
Occidental Center for the Arts cover ALL the Arts!
Also on Saturday 4/7 at 8 in the evening the OCA will host a concert event featuring a duo of Celtic Harpists and multi-instrumentalists Lisa Lynne & Aryeh Frankfurter. $19adv / $24dr
Saturday the 14th from 10-12 there will be an event at Salmon Creek School: Living With Fire in Sonoma County. Caerleon Safford from Fire Safe Sonoma will be on hand to talk about things you can do to protect your home and landscape. $10adults / $5 kids. At the beautiful orange building on campus. This event is co-sponsored by the Bodega Land Trust and Salmon Creek Watershed Council.
On the evening of the 14th at 8pm the OCA will have Blues/Rock/Soul Music: Sarah Baker with Nina Gerber & Mona Gnader. $22adv / $26dr
Friday April 27th brings us the annual Harmony Ark Foundation fund-raising gala. This years event will be held at the Union Hotel from 5:30 – 9:30pm. This is an adults only night of fun—raising money to support many important programs at the school. I attended the event a couple years ago for the first time and it was a lot of fun. Here’s some highlights: really awesome locally home-brewed beer, cool people to mingle with, great silent auction to leisurely peruse, tasty food to nosh, a rousing live auction that always includes some pretty phenomenal kid created art, and more.
So a heads up to the community, even if you don’t have kids in school or any other direct connection you should seriously consider attending this event just for the fun of it. If you end up bringing home some awesome schwag you can also rest easy knowing the money went to a good cause. Go to harmonyark.org to buy tickets to the event, raffle tickets and bid on several online auction items.
Local Theater LIVE at Salmon Creek School
That brings me to speaking of school and one avenue of many where the Harmony Ark’s funds are put to use. In the local theatre review department, I want to say a rousing congratulations to all involved in putting on the production of The Hobbit at Salmon Creek School—it was fantastic! A fun set design, quality acting and excellent baked goods at intermission—I can’t wait for their next production.
Sunday the 29th has another concert coming to the OCA. At 4pm the T Sisters group will be performing folk and americana music. I haven’t yet seen them live but have been hearing good things for a couple of years so I’m hoping to be able to make it. Tickets are $19adv / $24dr.
Please go to occidentalcenterforthearts.org for more info on ticketing and to see the full calendar of events. When looking at the busy calendar for the Arts Center It’s great to think back of all the years and countless peoples efforts to bring the idea of an Arts Center in Occidental to life. Through many twists and turns it happened, and boy look at it go!
