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WRFA’s Great American Picnic at the Southern Tier Brewing Company on June 18, 2019 – celebrating the 50th anniversary of the moon landing. Featuring music from Bill Ward and Friends, Cold Lazarus, Gary Peters Jr. and Friends, Steve Davis and Friends, Feverhawk, and Astroglide (members of We Speak Canadian, Two for Flinching, and Porcelain Busdrivers).

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Originally airing Friday, January 18, 2019.

WRFA’s Jason Sample talks with local musician Chris Lee about his music and bands Desecrator and We Speak Canadian, plus plays a few tracks from Desecrator’s album “Die for You… Dead Without You.”

Chris Lee

The 2018 Great American Picnic takes place Tuesday, June 26 at Southern Tier Brewing Co. Here’s an image from the 2015 event.  (Photo courtesy of Andy Palermo)

LAKEWOOD – An annual fundraising event for the only locally owned, non-religious radio station in Chautauqua County will be taking place Tuesday night, June 26 in Lakewood.

WRFA and the Southern Tier Brewing Co. are teaming up to present the seventh annual Great American Picnic – an evening of friends, food and live music from a variety of local and regional performers. This year’s theme is “I Love the 80s!”

The Great American Picnic will begin at 5 p.m. at the home of the Southern Tier Brewing Co. (2072 Stoneman Circle, Lakewood, NY) and will feature a wide variety of musical acts.

Musical entertainment for this year includes The Porcelain Bus Drivers, We Speak Canadian, Bill Ward, Feverhawk, Steve Davis & Friends, Cheers for Beers (Gary Peters, Jay Peterson, Dan Witherspoon, Steve Davis and more!), and Rebecca McIlvain.

Many of the performances will also be recorded and broadcast on WRFA.

All the music that will be played during the four-hour event will be songs from the 1980s.

Tickets to this exclusive event are $20 each and include two complimentary beers from Southern Tier. In addition, the WRFA Advisory Board will also be on hand selling hotdogs, raffle tickets, and letting attendees get their photo taken with a vintage 80s convertible.

The event continues until 9 p.m.

The final holiday weekend of the summer has arrived and there’s plenty going on throughout Chautauqua County, including here in Jamestown.

On Sunday, the 37th annual Jamestown Labor Day Celebration will take place at Bergman Park to honor the area’s labor force. The event is free and open to the public with a variety of food, entertainment, and other attractions taking place from noon to 9 p.m.

“This is to celebrate what we feel is the miracle of hard work and the greatest labor force that you’re going to find anywhere in the country, starting with the good folks who work for the city of Jamestown,” Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi explained during this week’s Community Matters program on WRFA. “The origins go back to 1979 when city officials decided to create a major festival for the community, on Labor Day, to make it a safe, non-travel holiday weekend and give everyone an opportunity to come together and celebrate the meaning of the holiday.”

In addition to live music featuring eight different acts including the Bogarts, Two for Flinching, and We Speak Canadian, there will also be a professional wrestling event – The Bergman Brawl – presented by Southern Tier Wrestling. The bouts will take place on the Babe Ruth Baseball Field from 1 to 3 p.m.

At 4 p.m. the Jamestown Area Central Labor Council AFL-CIO will present Joe Sweeny with the George Ritzer award. Mary Ellen Decker will be accepting the award on Sweeny’s behalf.

And while the event is free, there is a $5 fee for parking. But anyone parking their car at Bergman Park will receive a $5 raffle ticket for a chance to win a $100 Visa Gift card sponsored by Ahlstrom Schaeffer Electric. There will also be two chances to win a season ticket for the Jamestown Jammers.

The day will culminate with a fireworks extravaganza by Zambelli Fireworks International, slated to light up the sky at 8:30 p.m.

For local fitness enthusiasts,  Chautauqua Striders will hold the annual Dan Feather Memorial 5k Run/Walk at 9:30 a.m. with registration starting at 8 a.m.

For more information on all events and attractions at the city’s labor day festival, go online to Jamestownny.net.

The 36^th Annual Greater Jamestown Labor Day Festival will be held Sunday, Sept. 6 from noon until 9:00 p.m. at Bergman Park. According to organizers the event is a community celebration designed to honor the labor force of the city and surrounding area.

There is no cost to attend the festival, unless parking in Bergman Park, which will cost $5 per vehicle. However, everyone who pays will be entered to win a prize and all money raised is used to directly fund festival activities.

The Arts & Crafts fair begins at 11 a.m. and will feature over 20 vendors from all over Western New York and some vendors from Pennsylvania. All vendors are required to sell hand-made items

Live music begins at noon and will be featured on two stages with performances by The Bogarts, Teachers, Preachers and & Trent, We Speak Canadian, Two for Flinching, Jamestown Harmony Express, Razz & the JCC Band, Davis and Eng, and No Limit.

The Food Court opens at noon with all profits from the concessions benefitting not-for-profit organizations in the Greater Jamestown Area. In addition, there will be a wine and beer dining tent sponsored by Game Time Sports Bar & Grill for attendees 21 and older.

Chautauqua Striders will also hold the annual Dan Feather Memorial 5k Run/Walk at 9:30 a.m. with registration starting at 8 a.m.

Free Pepsi Bingo games will take place in the main pavilion starting at noon. Free kids carnival games including a bounce house by Eventz by Scott will start at 2 p.m.

The day will be capped off by a fireworks display by Zambelli Fireworks Internationale. Committee organizers are recommending that participants get to the park early enough to reserve a prime location on the lawn in front of the main stage for the best view of the fireworks, which begins when the final band, Two For Flinching, finishes its performance around 8:30 p.m.

For more details on Festival events, visit the City’s website at jamestownny.net or call the Parks Department at 483-7523

Listen

The Greater Jamestown Labor Day Festival is a community celebration designed to honor the labor force of the city and surrounding area. All money raised is used to directly fund festival activities and support the host of non-profit community service agencies who participate.

Committee organizers are recommending that festival participants get to the park early enough to reserve a prime location on the lawn in front of the main stage in order to be in the middle of the fireworks extravaganza by Zambelli Fireworks Internationale, which begins when the final band, Two For Flinching, finishes its performance around 8:30 p.m.

“Get to Bergman Park early Sunday, September 6th. Pick your spot on the lawn in front of the main stage. Get some food. Visit the vendors and crafters. Take the kids to play some games. Then enjoy the biggest fireworks display the region has to offer. The only way is to be right in the middle of all the action,” said Mayor Teresi.

People parking their cars at Bergman Park will receive a ticket to enter into a drawing at the Information Booth for a chance to win a $100 Visa Gift card that is being sponsored by Ahlstrom Schaeffer Electric Corporation. Ahlstrom Schaeffer provides electrical services for industrial, commercial, institutional and construction businesses. There will also be two chances to win a season ticket for the Southern Tier Xpress Hockey League games. Parking is $5.00. The prize drawing will take place at on the Main Stage just prior to the fireworks show.

Live music begins at noon and will be featured on two stages. The lineup includes:

Main Stage

• 12:30 – 2:00 p.m. The Bogarts
• 2:30 – 4:00 p.m. Teachers, Preachers & Trent
• 5:00 – 6:30 p.m. We Speak Canadian
• 7:00 – 8:30 p.m. Two For Flinching

Second Stage

• 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. Jamestown Harmony Express
• 1:30 – 2:30 p.m. Razz & the JCC Band, featuring Victoria McIlvain on vocals
• 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. Davis & Eng
• 5:00 – 6:00 p.m. No Limit

The Food Court opens at noon with all profits from the concessions benefitting not-for-profit organizations in the Greater Jamestown Area. All organizations will be selling Pepsi products. In addition, there will be a wine and beer dining tent sponsored by Game Time Sports Bar & Grill for attendees 21 and older.

Chautauqua Striders will hold the annual Dan Feather Memorial 5k Run/Walk at 9:30 a.m. with registration starting at 8 a.m.

The Arts & Crafts fair begins at 11 a.m. and will feature over 20 vendors from all over Western New York and some vendors from Pennsylvania. All vendors are required to sell hand-made items.

Free Pepsi Bingo games will take place in the main pavilion starting at noon. Free kids carnival games including a bounce house by Eventz by Scott will start at 2 p.m.

The Jamestown Area Central Labor Council AFL-CIO will present a deserving member of the area workforce the George Ritzer Labor Award at 4 p.m. on the main stage.

Sponsors of the Labor Day Festival include the City of Jamestown, Media One Group, Ahlstrom-Schaeffer, Pepsi of Jamestown, IBEW Local 106, and Jamestown Area Central Labor Council AFL-CIO.

For more details on Festival events, visit the City’s website at jamestownny.net or call the Parks Department at 483-7523.

[WRFA’s Jason Sample interviews Shane Hawkins from Infinity during a recent episode of Arts on Fire]

JAMESTOWN, N.Y. – Local music fans will once again descend upon downtown Jamestown to show their support for music and arts education in Chautauqua County. The eleventh annual Local Music Showcase (LMS) is set to take place on Saturday, Sept. 6 at ten participating venues with all proceeds once again going to Infinity Visual and Performing Arts.

“LMS is our biggest fundraiser of the year, with 100 percent of the proceeds going to support instruction costs at Infinity,” explains Infinity Executive Director Shane Hawkins.

This year, the fundraiser is even more important than any other year. In October 2014, Infinity plans to begin their new program year in a new, larger location in the ground floor of the Lynn Building, 301 E. 2nd St., Jamestown, NY. The renovation’s budget for the new Infinity Center is $222,000. Updates and more information about the progress and capital campaign for the renovation project can be found at wwww.Infinity2014.com.

Hawkins adds that each year LMS is only made possible through collaboration between local businesses, musicians and volunteers.

“This event would not be possible without the support of the local venues, business owners, local musicians, sound technicians and the team of over 60 volunteers that donate their time each year to make this event possible.” Hawkins says. “All of the ten participating venues this year and many of the performers and volunteers have been strong supporters of LMS every year. It’s a wonderful community effort to support arts education and local music, and a terrific night of local entertainment.”

Because LMS is the program’s single biggest fundraiser of the year, Hawkins says support from the entire community is crucial, especially with repeated and wide spread funding cuts to arts and youth programs the past few years.

“It’s important that the community understand that much of our program relies on donations and fundraising efforts like this one,” says Hawkins. “Currently, just .2 percent of our operating budget comes from government-related sources, while nearly ten percent comes from fundraising events like LMS. Attending fundraising events, or supporting Infinity with a tax-deductible donation helps us continue to make this wonderful program and network of mentors available to more of our community’s children.”

The cost to attend LMS is $10, which will pay for an all-access wristband that allows attendees admittance into any and all participating venues. Pre-sale event tickets can be purchased at Infinity Visual and Performing Arts Center at 115 3rd Street and exchanged for wristbands the evening of the event. Wristbands can also be purchased the evening of the event at participating venues.

Infinity is also seeking volunteers to help out for a couple of hours at various venues. Anyone who volunteers gets a pass for the entire event. For more information on the event or to volunteer, call (716) 664-0991 or visit www.infinityperformingarts.org.

THE LINEUP

Brazil
6:00- Alex Kates
7:00- Rob & Karen Suber
8:00- Doc & Bill
9:00- Davis & Eng
10:00- 6 to 12

Cibo
9:30- Bill Ward & Amanda Barton
10:30- The New Tenants
11:30- Skeletons
12:30- Ryan Kinal

Forte
10:30- Velvet Cabbies
11:40- John C. Merino
12:50- Gary & Jay

Infinity
6:15- Jake & Sarah
7:15- Infinity Saxophone Ensemble
8:00- Collective Groove

Jamestown Skate Products
6:00- Buddy McGrupp
7:15- DJ 80n3 feat. M-Dro
8:30- Little Sea Bird
9:45- WAKE
10:25- Plug

Mojo’s
6:00 – Reverend Adam and The Smooth Cruisers
7:15- The Distractions
8:30- The Elektra Kings
9:45- We Speak Canadian
11:15- Uncle Claud’s Band
12:45- Blind Society

Shawbucks
9:00- Qwister
10:00- Big Leg Emma
11:00- The Bogarts
12:00- Thee Audience
1:00- Smackdab

Studio Theater
6:00- Stephanie Benson
7:15- Amanda & Sara the Greatest
8:30- Sean Lander
9:45- Dalton Lanphere
11:00- Joshua Reuter

The Pub
6:15- Dave McDonald
7:10- Andy White
8:05- Steel Rails
9:00- Will & Sara
9:55- Adam Gould
10:50- Ben Bracey
11:45- Kris Meekins
12:40- Tony Flint

Wine Cellar
7:15- Ryan Melquist
8:30- Cindy Love
9:45- William Petransky
11:00- Brian Hanna and Scott Horton
12:15- Joey Cobra

ABOUT LMS: The Chautauqua Region Word newspaper organized the first Local Music Showcase, which was held in 2004 in Bemus Point, N.Y. In 2006, the event was moved to downtown Jamestown to accommodate the increased number of bands and musicians who were interested participating. All proceeds collected from the benefit have gone directly to fund arts education at Infinity Visual and Performing Arts, Inc.

ABOUT INFINITY: Infinity Visual and Performing Arts, Inc. is dedicated to building the resiliency of our community’s youth by providing unique opportunity through access to the arts. More than a place, more than a program, Infinity is a chance for youth to become immersed in arts and learning, to take creative risks, and to discover their infinite potential. To learn more or to donate, visit www.infinityperformingarts.org.

The festival is scheduled to run from noon until 9:00 p.m. at Bergman Park and will feature plenty of food, arts and craft vendors, events for the kids and live music throughout the day. A fireworks display is also slated to take place, beginning at 8:30 Sunday night.

Last year, the festival had to be cut short because of the poor weather conditions and the Fireworks display never took place. This year, city officials are hopeful the weather will be more cooperative, although the current forecast does say there is a likelihood of rain, at least for part of the day. Officials say they will wait until Saturday afternoon and make a decision on whether or not to hold the event, or wait until the rain date of Monday, Sept. 1.

FESTIVAL DETAILS

Admission to the festival is free, although there will be a $5 fee for parking in Bergman Park. Although anyone who pays for parking will receive a ticket to enter into a drawing at the Information Booth for a chance to win a $100 Visa Gift card that is being sponsored by Ahlstrom Schaeffer Electric Corporation. The prize drawing will take place at 8:15 p.m. on the Main Stage.

All money raised is used to directly fund festival activities and support the host of non-profit community service agencies who participate.

Live entertainment at the festival includes music from Two for Flinching, We Speak Canadian, the Bogarts, Cindy Love, the New Tenants, Razzers Jazzers, Teachers and Preachers and Jamestown Harmony Express.

The Arts & Crafts fair begins at 11 a.m. and will feature over 25 vendors from all over Western New York and some vendors from Pennsylvania. All vendors are required to sell hand-made items.

The Food Court opens at noon with all profits from the concessions benefiting not-for-profit organizations in the Greater Jamestown Area.

And, the day will once again begin with Chautauqua Striders holding the annual Dan Feature Memorial 5k Run/Walk at 9:30 a.m. with registration starting at 8 a.m.

The Jamestown Area Central Labor Council AFL-CIO will present a deserving member of the area workforce the George Ritzer Labor Award at 4 p.m. on the main stage.

For more details on Festival events, visit the City’s website at jamestownny.net or call the Parks Department at 483-7523.