Hooray For Hometown Holidays

Although the forecasters continually mentioned rain, Hometo>wn Holidays remained dry and mostly sunny during three days of festivities. About 18,000 people on Saturday and 30,000 on both Sunday and Monday attended the spectrum of events in Town Center.

Wandering around meant taking in far more shows than planned. The six stages beckoned from almost every corner. Bill Kirchen‘s toe-tapping honky-tonk emanated pure enjoyment and demonstrated an ease of entertaining. Leaving, TX had me hoping the sun would go behind a cloud for their sakes, while the crowd sat in the shade around the cool Courthouse fountain. When they ended with a new one, Big Sweet Life, I kept thinking Big Street Life because that’s what we were having.

On Saturday, the crowd had a rowdy good time with fiddle rock from Blaggards on the Plaza Stage. Since they hail from Houston, they actually said “Nice singing ya all” with an Irish accent which you have to hear to believe. When the lead singer’s hair is longer than mine and he knows how to use it, I’m sold on the band. They did some family-friendly songs by taking some words out, but looked forward to playing in DC on Saturday night so they could put some words back in. When the Friends of the Library asked them to announce the end of their book sale they jokingly complied. I’m a complete fan of their Stout Irish Rock.

What better place to experience our local high school talent than at Hometown Holidays? On Saturday, Stuck in the Mud including a few band members from Richard Montgomery High School rocked up a rendition of 99 Red Balloons. You have to chuckle when a high school band says “First song we ever wrote way back in 8th grade.” The song, Bigoted was punk-influenced tight. They even bring out the violin and acoustic guitar to mix it up. On Sunday, a big high school crowd also cheered completely different talents from Wootton High School’s a cappella groups , Chaos and the Supertonics.

All these entertainment tastes were sprinkled around the real Taste of Rockville where volunteers sold tickets for $1.25 each to benefit the Chamber of Commerce and Community Ministries of Rockville. Most tastes were 2-3 tickets from a large, impresseive selection of restaurants.

VisArts Fine Arts Festival more than doubled in size and spread to include Gibbs Street and Maryland Avenue. My husband snuck back and bought me earrings and a necklace from Stacy Naughton’s Twisted Glass, funky functional art. Later I added some ceiling fan pulls to our tab. When I pointed a friend in her direction and she also purchased a bunch of gifts. This Fairfax artist is my pick from the Festival and you can shop online if you missed her.

As for the big evening headliners, I missed Saturday night but musician Keegan Corbey, who played the acoustic stage twice on Saturday, told me “Pat McGee was incredible.” On Sunday night, Mayor Hoffmann, the City Council, Jenny Forehand and Jim Gilchrist were all on hand to introduce the main attraction after having what appeared to be a very good time in the sponsor VIP area. Since I was forced to learn reggae in order to get a radio show at my college station, I wanted to catch the Wailers. To actually hear people who knew and played with Bob Marley was a thrill. Can’t Hang opened with their bass back and forth between rock and reggae, but the Wailers are a pure island vibe. Their horns bounced around like the beach balls flying during the performance. From Jammin to One Love, the Wailers announced, “Rockville, we want to give you some good, good loving” and they did. What always intrigues me is how long-time Rockville residents mingle with whatever crowd the band attracts. This year the crowd had more dreadlocks, Hawaiian shirts and caps. Even when people don’t know the entertainers, they want to be a part of the party.

What a phenomenal job from the City staff. The rest of the summer we can do the usual, but on Memorial Day Weekend we come together as a community. While enjoying the fun, we discuss the latest issues and happenings. With something for everyone, Hometown Holidays makes Rockville special.

For the last six years I’ve been in the Memorial Day Parade with my Cub Scout Pack 928. The crowd always happily waves. This year I carried an American flag on a long pole and found the crowd respectful. People stood up for the flag. This gesture made me believe we haven’t forgotten the true meaning of Memorial Day, to remember our fallen soldiers and what it means to be an American.

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