Free summer concerts draw large crowds to Allied Gardens park

By Anthony Wagner

Boy Scouts marched, music thundered, neighbors danced and everyone had an overall blast at our inaugural AG First Fridays concert series June 5 in Allied Gardens Community Park, presented by Ideal Plumbing, Heating, Air & Electrical. We were thrilled to see 750 friends and neighbors from throughout Navajo area attend.

Be sure to check out our Facebook page and browse all the pictures that were taken that day.

Mark your calendar for the following dates: July 3, Aug. 7 and Sept. 4. All concerts will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. in Allied Gardens Community Park, 5155 Greenbrier Ave.

Residents are encouraged to bring food, drink, blankets and chairs. (Courtesy AG First Fridays/Facebook) — Residents are encouraged to bring food, drink, blankets and chairs.
(Courtesy AG First Fridays/Facebook)

This July 3, the Ballad Mongers are set to play. They’re a fun, rockin’, show stoppin’ band, featuring eclectic original songs and your favorite covers too. This talented, versatile and professional band knows how to get a party started. Featuring vocal harmony, violin, guitars (both acoustic and electric), keyboards, harmonica, horns, bass and drums — all playing a song list that’s a “who’s who” of fun dance music — their variety and showmanship is sure to please everyone.

The Ballad Mongers have performed at The Summer Pops concert series by the Bay, Belly Up Tavern, First Night Escondido, Canes, the San Diego County Fair, KPRI’s Green Flash Concerts and many private gigs, to name a few! This band can go from The Beatles to Green Day, Van Morrison to Coldplay, dinner to dance music in a heartbeat. They even have an original album, “Door to Door.”

We’ve also booked HooDoo Blues for Aug. 7 and the Country Rockin Rebels for Sept. 4.

AG First Fridays is the result of collaboration between the Allied Gardens – Grantville Community Council, our local Kiwanis Club and the publishers of the Mission Times Courier. Our mission is to provide our neighbors and friends of all ages a venue where we can congregate, enjoy local musical talent and celebrate the summer as valued members of our community. Our goal is to make this a neighborhood tradition.

Since permitting restrictions prevent us from having any food or drink for sale, we encourage families to bring picnics and get to know their neighbors.

We are very fortunate to have the financial support of the Teemsma family — owners of Ideal Plumbing, Heating, Air & Electrical — who have made a generous donation as the title sponsor for this series. Additional heavy lifting sponsors include San Diego City Councilmember Scott Sherman, Kaiser Permanente, Allied Gardens Shopping Center, Windmill Farms, Superior Ready Mix, Mission Trails Church, A-1 Self Storage and our Allied Gardens / Grantville Jersey Mike’s Subs. Please support our fine sponsors!

If you would like to sponsor this community event, please call me at the number listed at the end of this article. All sponsorships are 501(c)(3) tax-deductible contributions.

For updates and more information on the concert series, find AG First Fridays on Facebook and visit AlliedGardens.org.

—I’m Anthony Wagner, president of the Allied Gardens-Grantville Community Council. We represent the community interests of Allied Gardens and Grantville. Check out our new website at AlliedGardens.org. Feel free to call me at 619-253-4989 or write me a note at[email protected] or tweet @AnthonyWagnerSD.