‘Health Fair Saturday’
Saturday, Sept. 26
The San Diego East County Chamber of Commerce will present East County’s largest annual free community health fair from noon – 4 p.m. The event will take place at Grossmont Center (5500 Grossmont Center Drive) near the movie theaters.
More than 35 booths will feature health screenings for cholesterol, body mass index, blood pressure and blood glucose/diabetes. There will also be information available on various health-related topics including hospice care, fitness, health insurance, nutrition and more. On-stage demonstrations of karate, yoga and exercise routines will also be given. Visit eastcountychamber.org for more information.
View the total lunar eclipse at Cabrillo National Monument
Sunday, Sept. 27
As the sun sets (6:37 p.m.) this evening, the moon will rise (6:35 p.m.) already being eclipsed by the Earth’s shadow. The maximum eclipse will be at 7:47 p.m. NASA says this is a “super moon lunar eclipse.” A super moon occurs when a full moon coincides with the lunar orbit being closest to the Earth making the moon appear larger and brighter than normal. The combination of a lunar eclipse and super moon is a rare occurrence.
Cabrillo National Monument (1800 Cabrillo Monument Drive, Point Loma) will host a special viewing for the occasion with telescopes provided by The San Diego Astronomy Club. Music and refreshments will be provided, flashlights encouraged. Tickets are $30 per car (maximum 10 people per car); parking is free. Check-in will be between 6 – 7 p.m. (no late check-ins). The event raises funds for San Diego’s only national park. Visit bit.ly/1OqKqaD for tickets.
Mission Valley Persuasive Speakers Club speech contest
Tuesday, Sept. 29
This toastmasters club will hold a speech contest with inspiring and humorous speeches from 6:30 – 8 p.m. This group meet at 4444 Zion Ave. in Grantville. For more information visit 701611.toastmastersclubs.org.
Air Museum BBQ and movie nights
Tuesdays, Sept. 30 – Oct. 27
Every Tuesday for the next several weeks the Warbirds West Air Museum (1725 North Marshall Ave., El Cajon) will host these events. An $8 donation includes barbecued hot dogs and hamburgers, chips and a drink. Attendees will sit in first-class airline seats and watch an aviation-themed movie on the hangar’s big screen. BBQ is from 5:30 – 6:45 p.m. with the movie from 7 – 9 p.m. The lineup of films includes: “Top Gun” (Sept. 30), “October Sky” (Oct. 6), “It! The Terror from Beyond Space” (Oct. 13), “Forbidden Planet” (Oct. 20) and “The Day the Earth Stood Still” (Oct. 27). Visit wwam.org for more information on these events and the museum.
La Mesa Oktoberfest
Friday, Oct. 2 and Saturday, Oct. 3
This free two-day street festival will be put on by The La Mesa Village Merchants Association who started the event 42 years ago. The festivities will be from noon – 10 p.m. each day with various events and entertainment throughout. The Allison Street beer garden will be family-friendly, while the Palm Avenue one will be for patrons ages 21 and up.
Traditional entertainment will be performed in both beer gardens throughout the weekend. The popular Bavarian Beergarden Band and the Alpine Gemutlichkeit Dancers will perform on Friday from 5 – 9:30 p.m. and again on Saturday from noon – 9:30 p.m. in the Allison Street beer garden. Mr. Mark Danisovsky will perform in the Palm Avenue beer garden from 6 – 9:30 p.m. on Friday and from 1 – 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. The El Cajon German Band will perform in the Palm Avenue beer garden from 4:30 – 9:30 p.m. on Saturday.
There will be over 100 vendors on hand including food vendors with German brats and more. The brew being poured will include Paulaner and German Oktoberfest Marzen, Hef, Munich Lager and more. Visit lmvma.com for more information.
Free blood pressure screenings
Tuesday, Oct. 6 and Friday, Oct. 16
No appointment necessary for these free screenings by a registered nurse on Oct. 6 from 9:30 – 11 a.m. at the Sharp Grossmont Senior Resource Center (9000 Wakarusa St., Room 16, La Mesa) and on Oct. 16 from 9:30 – 11 a.m. at the La Mesa Adult Enrichment Center (8450 La Mesa Blvd.). Call 619-740-4214 for more information. Open to the public.
‘Stage Fright’
Friday, Oct. 9 – Sunday, Nov. 8
Lamplighters Community Theatre continues its 78th season with the mystery “Stage Fright.” The story centers around a drama critic who falls prey to an actress he has scorned in several reviews. Along with her husband, the actress plans to murder the critic but first tortures him, inspiring embarrassing confessions from the man. The play by Charles Marowitz promises to be part horror with twists and turns, along with some humor thrown in.
“Stage Fright” is directed by Jerry Pilato and produced by George Bailey. Lamplighters Community Theatre is located in the La Mesa Village Station Center at the corner of Severin and Amaya drives in La Mesa. Parking is free. Tickets are $20 with discounts for seniors, students, and active military ($17). The play will be performed at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. on Sundays. Visit LamplightersLaMesa.com for more information and tickets.
Walking Wednesday
Wednesday, Oct. 14
Join a group of La Mesa residents for a walk along La Mesa’s current and future urban trails. This is a great opportunity to be active and connect with neighbors. For this walk, the group will meet at 9 a.m. at the Amaya Drive Trolley Station (546 Amaya Court). The route is 2.4 miles with several uphill portions. The walk ends at 10:30 a.m.
FallFest
Friday, Oct. 16 and Saturday, Oct. 17
The La Mesa Chamber of Commerce’s inaugural FallFest will be held at Grossmont Center in the parking lot in front of Macy’s and next to Hooley’s Irish Pub. The two-day event will be free and family friendly. The food lineup so far includes: Tarantino Gourmet Sausages, Claim Jumper and The Hills Local Pub, and is growing.
The Chamber has released a schedule of festivities for both days of FallFest. The beer garden, serving Samuel Adams beer, will be open 4 p.m. – midnight on Friday and noon – midnight on Saturday. Rock ‘n’ roll trio The Ideas will perform 4 – 6 p.m. on Friday and 12:30 – 4:30 p.m. on Saturday. Classic rock ‘n’ roll band The Cartune Dogs performs 7 – 11 p.m. on Friday. Award-winning country artist Brent Payne will perform 7 – 11 p.m. on Saturday. For more information visit LaMesaChamber.com.
Park Appreciation Day
Saturday, Oct. 17
Each year volunteers throughout La Mesa help spruce up various parks in the community. Some organizations (scout troops, social groups, civic clubs) and businesses get involved as a group, other folks come as individuals. There will be a few special projects available this year including painting and planting at select locations. Visit cityoflamesa.com for more sign-up information and a required waiver.
Food drive
Saturday, Oct. 17
The City of La Mesa and Human Relations Advisory Commission will host this food drive from 8 a.m. – noon at the City’s municipal parking lot at the corner of Allison and Date avenues. The food drive will benefit the San Diego Food Bank. Most needed items include: canned meats, dry or canned beans, cereal, rice, nuts and seeds, peanut butter, canned soup, canned or dried fruit, canned vegetables, powdered milk, pasta and infant formula. Call 619-667-1167 with any questions.
La Mesa Woman’s Club fundraiser
Saturday, Oct. 24
The La Mesa Woman’s Club will hold a special fashion show and luncheon at their clubhouse (5220 Wilson St.) to benefit the Boys and Girls Club of La Mesa. The fashion show will start at 11 a.m. and feature items from Chico’s (Fashion Valley Mall) and PreVue (Grossmont Center). There will be a raffle with a grand prize of a seven-day cruise for two with Holland America Cruise Line (destinations include Mexico, Caribbean, Alaska or Canada/New England.) Reservations for the fashion show/luncheon are $30 (due by Oct. 17) and can be mailed to the clubhouse.
If you are interested in the La Mesa Woman’s Club they hold two meetings each month — an evening session at 6:30 p.m. on the second Wednesday of the month and a daytime session at 1 p.m. on the third Monday of the month. Visit LaMesaWomansClub.org for more information.
