SEE A SEA OF 30,000 PUMPKINS! Cal Poly Pomona’s 27th Pumpkin Festival, starting Saturday, October 5, is one of the largest in Southern California, takes place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and tomorrow at the university’s AGRIscapes Center, 4102 S. University Drive, Pomona. In a Pomona Valley tradition, the school’s field will be transformed into a sea of orange with more than 30,000 Cal Poly Pomona-grown pumpkins.
FEAR NOT: On Sunday, September 29 Pilgrim Place’s Petterson Museum of Intercultural Arts, at 730 Plymouth Rd., Claremont, invites the public to its grand reopening celebration from 2 to 5 p.m. with the opening of its “Gods and Monsters” exhibition. The show, which focuses on how humans have revered and feared both gods and monsters, is free and open to the public.
‘TOP CHEF’ CARLA HALL ON FOOD JUSTICE Carla Hall, Top Chef contender and former co-host of The Chew, joins Westways food editor Rachel Ng in a free and open to the public on Tuesday, September 24 at 7 p.m. conversation at Scripps College’s Garrison Theater, 241 E. 10th St., Claremont. The event is free, but registration is required at scrippscollege.edu/events/calendar. Ms. Hall is a champion of connecting communities with the culinary world.
EXPLORE AVIATION’S GOLDEN AGE The University Club of Claremont hosts an open to the public luncheon and discussion, “The So Cal Aviation Industry from 1939 to 1945,” with guest speaker Mike Smith, docent and community outreach coordinator at the Planes of Fame Museum. The event starts at 11:30 a.m. at Hughes Community Center, 1700 Danbury Rd., Claremont. A $20 meeting fee includes a buffet lunch. Mr. Smith’s presentation is about the aviation industry in Southern California from 1939 through 1945.
EMPOWERING SENIORS: Claremont Senior Program presents a free and open to the public workshop on September 10, “Self-Empowerment for Seniors and People with Disabilities,” at 12:30 p.m. at the Joslyn Center, 660 N. Mountain Ave., Claremont. The class is designed to help seniors learn about resources in the community that can help them successfully live in place, such as transition and diversion services.
THE FAIR GOES POP: On Friday, August 30 the Los Angeles County Fair opens its gates at noon for its 97th season. The Fair, at 1101 W. McKinley Ave., Pomona, offers its traditional rides, overabundance of food, art and craft shows, retail, livestock and much more through Sunday, September 22. Today is Pomona Day, with Pomona residents with valid I.D. admitted for $8. Other local savings days include La Verne Day on Friday, September 6.
WORKING FOR THE COMMON GOOD: Claremont Presbyterian Church, at 1111 N. Mountain Ave., Claremont, hosts a Jazz Vespers event Sunday at 6 p.m. The theme is Working for the Common Good. “’Work’ and ‘labor’ are not our favorite words,” read a press release. “And yet, when we say, ‘labor of love’ or ‘working for the common good,’ our perspective changes. All our work is rooted in some higher goal: family, community, social justice, environment, beauty, peace.
LENNEAR CELEBRATES ASH GROVE: On Saturday, August 17 Claremont’s Claudia Lennear will join The New Ash Grove Players in celebrating 60 years of music and activism from the legendary Hollywood music venue the Ash Grove, which from 1958 to 1973 brought giants like Muddy Waters, Kris Kristofferson, Howlin’ Wolf, Son House, Johnny Cash, Lenny Bruce, Linda Ronstadt, Charles Bukowski, Ry Cooder, Chuck Berry, Jackson Browne and Lightnin’ Hopkins, among countless others
‘THE MUPPET MOVIE’ IN THE GARDEN Claremont’s Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, at 1500 N. College Ave., continues its Cinema Botanica: Movies in the Garden, series with the G-rated The Muppet Movie on Friday, August 16. The family friendly film series runs from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. every Friday evening in August. The films will be shown in the California Courtyard.
THE SAN GABRIELS: THEN AND NOW: Sustainable Claremont hosts a free and open to the public Monday, August 5 dialog, “Home Ground: The San Gabriels in the Anthropocene,” from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Hahn Building, Room 101, 420 N. Harvard Ave., Claremont. In 1877, Sierra Club founder John Muir said that the rugged San Gabriel Mountains were “full of hidden beauty.” But over the last century much has changed.
CONCERT IN THE PARK Claremont’s 7 to 8:30 p.m. Monday night July 29 Concerts in the Park continue this week with Night Blooming Jazzmen at Memorial Park, 840 N. Indian Hill Blvd. The Kiwanis Club offers a variety of concessions, from burgers, hot dogs and quesadillas to ice cream, popcorn, nachos, candy and drinks at the events. Concertgoers can also bring a picnic, blankets and low back chairs.
Neon Nation will rock Memorial Park this Monday night at the concert in the park, but there's lots more to do in Claremont. Check our nine-day calendar of events to plan your week.
GREAT LIVE MUSIC: On Friday, July 19 Claremont’s free live music series boast a fantastic lineup tonight from 6 to 9 p.m. At Laemmle Plaza folks can hear 1940s big band retro tunes from Harmony Sisters and the Little Big Band; guitar driven jazz from The Marc Weller Combo will be going down at the chamber of commerce; Mario Rojas and his band bring soulful original rock and eclectic cover tunes to city hall; and the Squeakin’ Wheels perform at Shelton Park, showcasing transcendent harmonies from brother and sister Dave and Marguerite Millard
RUSHINGWIND ART, MUSIC SHOW Claremont Heritage welcomes Native American music award winner and artist Steven Rushingwind for a free public performance and art exhibit on Saturday, July 6 from 6 to 9 p.m. at Garner House in Memorial Park, 840 N. Indian Hill Blvd. As part of the First Saturday Art Walk, Mr. Rushingwind will show his latest paintings at 6 p.m. and play Native American flute during an opening reception from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m.
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