Events

Decorated Navy SEAL to Speak on Memorial Day

Published

5 years ago

May 21, 2019

Greenbrae’s John Gulick is guest at May 27 event at Marin Center

A decorated U.S. Navy SEAL from the Vietnam War era, Greenbrae’s John Gulick, will be the featured speaker at the County of Marin’s Memorial Day ceremony May 27 at the Marin Veterans Memorial Auditorium in San Rafael.

A New Jersey native, Gulick received a Bronze Star (with combat V) and a Purple Heart for his contributions during 1963-67. He was assigned to an underwater demolition team with the destroyer escort U.S.S. Fletcher and later served 18 months with SEAL Team One, including six months in combat. Since 1970, Gulick has been a lawyer – “its own unique version of combat,” he said – and has lived in Marin since 1985.

The Memorial Day event, presented by the Marin County United Veterans Council and supported by the Marin County Board of Supervisors, honors all fallen American servicemen and servicewomen in the line of duty with a special emphasis on Marin’s own heroes. It includes a ceremony inside the Veterans Memorial Auditorium starting at 10 a.m. followed by an outdoor ceremony in front of the military monuments on Avenue of the Flags, just outside the auditorium.

The Civic Center ceremony will feature patriotic songs played by the Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District Non-Marching Band, Susan Zelinsky and her vocal students, plus Melissa Stephens and her son Garrett Aubert. Cadets from the U.S. Air Force Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps based at Novato High School will participate as a color guard, drill team and flag raisers, and elected officials and representatives from local veterans groups will be recognized.

The program then moves outdoors to the memorials on the Avenue of the Flags. After wreaths are laid at the foot of statues, “Taps” is played to conclude the ceremony. Doughnuts and coffee will be served in the Redwood Room of Marin Center after the outdoor ceremony.

Learn more about Marin County’s Veterans Services program online. The program is overseen by the Marin County Department of Health and Human Services.

All public meetings and events sponsored or conducted by the County of Marin are held at accessible sites. If you are a person with a disability and require information or materials in alternative formats – or if you require accommodation to participate in a county program, service or activity – please contact department staff by email or at (415) 473-7331 or (415) 473-4381 (voice/TTY).

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Arts and Culture

Richmond Preps for Full Weekend of Cinco de Mayo Festivities

Cinco de Mayo festivities in Richmond and San Pablo are some of the bests in Bay, and organizers say that tradition will be alive and well at this weekend’s annual parade and festival. The action kicks off Saturday, May 4, with the 16th Annual Cinco de Mayo Richmond/San Pablo Peace & Unity Parade. The parade of floats, performances, and community organizations starts at 10 a.m. at 24th Street and Barrett Avenue and Richmond and ends at 12:30 p.m. at St. Paul’s Church, 1845 Church Lane in San Pablo.

Published

2 days ago

May 4, 2024

Oakland Post

Scene from the 2023 Cinco de Mayo parade from Richmond to San Pablo. Photo courtesy The Richmond Standard.

By Mike Kinney

The Richmond Standard

Cinco de Mayo festivities in Richmond and San Pablo are some of the bests in Bay, and organizers say that tradition will be alive and well at this weekend’s annual parade and festival.

The action kicks off Saturday, May 4, with the 16th Annual Cinco de Mayo Richmond/San Pablo Peace & Unity Parade. The parade of floats, performances, and community organizations starts at 10 a.m. at 24th Street and Barrett Avenue and Richmond and ends at 12:30 p.m. at St. Paul’s Church, 1845 Church Lane in San Pablo.

The parade’s Grand Marshall this year will be community organizer Diego Garcia, owner of Leftside Printing.

The festivities continue Sunday with the Cinco de Mayo Festival along 23rd Street, which last year drew over 100,000 people, according to the 23rd Street Merchants Association. This year’s festival will again run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. between the intersections of Rheem Avenue and Clinton Avenue. It will feature two entertainment stages, one sponsored by La Raza 93.3 FM at 23rd and Rheem, and another sponsored by Radio Lazer FM at 23rd and Clinton.

Both events are important for the city and the region’s Latino community.

San Pablo Mayor Genoveva Calloway, who co-chairs the parade alongside John Marquez, president of the Contra Costa Community College District Board of Trustees, says Saturday’s festivities are about bringing the Richmond and San Pablo communities together in unity.

“This truly connects the spectators and people in the parade as one,” Calloway said. “The parade showcases the real communities of Richmond and San Pablo – our nonprofits, schools, horse riders, classic cars and trucks, our local businesses. All of these people represent the heartbeat of our community.”

Rigo Mendoza, vice president of the 23rd Street Merchants Association, said that at its heart, Richmond’s Cinco de Mayo Festival celebrates the date the Mexican army’s victory over France at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862.

But John Marquez started up the popular festival to bring the community together and also to exhibit the community’s businesses and culture to visitors, Mendoza said. The gathering was also a way to promote peace in the community.