On Friday nights throughout July and August, Washington Park in Groton will offer plenty of family fun through its Concerts in the Park series.
The series, co-sponsored and co-produced by the Groton Utilities and the City of Groton Parks and Recreation Department, kicked off June 20 to a streaming crowd of locals, families, and friends on blankets and lawn chairs, enjoying picnics on the green of Washington Park as they listened to the sounds of country rock provided by Jay Dempsey and Highway Call. The band played on a stage set up in the middle of the basketball court among line-dancers and frolicking children.
“The concerts are designed to be especially appealing to families for a fun, inexpensive night out,” said co-chair and manager of the Economic Development of Groton Utilities Frank E. Winkler. “Spectators are encouraged to bring their families and perhaps a picnic supper, since all the concerts will be held during the early evening hours.”
Next up is the band 9Teen, scheduled to perform on Friday, July 11.
“On Friday, July 18, Dick Campo and his Big Band will be featured,” Winkler noted in a recent statement. “High Times, another longtime, local favorite band, will end the month’s schedule on Friday, July 25. The Cartells, a local favorite band for more than 20 years, will kick off the August schedule on Friday, Aug. 8. The concert series concludes on Friday, Aug. 15, when Rock ‘n’ Soul Revue will perform.”
Winkler later spoke of the concert series’ history, explaining how the City of Groton used to sponsor a few concerts over the summer. In 2004, Groton Utilities sponsored the concerts to celebrate its 100th anniversary.
“[Groton Utilities] sponsored the concerts in the park on its own in 2004 as a way of giving back to the community and customers for the first 100 years,” Winkler said.
He said he later approached former director of the Groton City Parks and Recreation Department Bill Sanford to be the co-sponsor for the event, splitting the expenses and providing six concerts a year.
“Starting in 2005, [the concerts] have been co-sponsored by Groton Utilities and the City of Groton Recreation Department,” Winkler continued. This year, Winkler said both sponsors decided to add an extra concert and they hope the weather will continue to work in their favor. Two rain dates in August are reserved in case of cancellations.
Winkler said no concerts will be held on July 4 and on Friday, Aug. 1, which happens to be City of Groton Day.
July 4 in Groton
Winkler said he’s been helping to promote the Groton Parks and Recreation Department’s annual Fourth of July Parade, sponsored by the Town of Groton.
Program Supervisor Ben Morse said about 76 groups have already been confirmed, including town and city representatives, local police, and state Sen. Andrew Maynard.
The 30th edition of the holiday parade, according to Morse, is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Friday, July 4. The parade will move along Route 1 from Poquonnock Plains Park to the Groton Shopping Center at Drozdyk Drive.
The parade’s theme this year is “Hometown Heroes.”
“It’s a tribute to all the different groups that help make the town run,” Morse said. “It was to incorporate everybody that does positive things for the town.
“We [also] wanted to honor [William] Bill Jervis who has done a lot of community work throughout the town,” he added.
Jervis, who retired from the Town of Groton Police Department on Aug. 7 last year as a lieutenant after 34 years of serving the town, is the parade’s grand marshal.
“Bill Jervis was involved in implementing and directing the community policing program as part of his duties,” Morse said in a recent statement. “He co-founded the Groton Maritime Academy in 2003 and is now president of the Maritime Education Foundation of Connecticut, which helps to raise funding for the program. His involvement in the community has been extensive.”
Among changes to the parade this year will be special accommodations made for veterans.
“For [veterans] who are viewing it, they can come down and view it from that section where there will be a tent and some refreshments,” Morse said. The veterans section will be located in front of Chelsea Bank near the end of the parade route, next to the judges’ viewing stand.
The complete “Concerts in the Park 2008” schedule can be found on the Groton Utilities Web site, grotonutilities.com, and Groton City’s Web site at cityofgroton.com. For concert information or cancellation notices, call 446-4128, the concert hotline.