Laurel Neighborhood Newsby John Frando | |
Karen Graf’s 4th Grade class at Laurel Elementary participating in the finals of the Oakland Schools Oratorical Festival. Photo by Wes Wagon
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Music Festival Coming
Mark your calendars now for the Fourth Annual Laurel Summer Solstice Music Festival on Saturday, June 20. Oakland will join over one hundred cities worldwide for the annual Fête de la Musique, or World Music Festival, when professional and amateur musicians donate their time and play free public concerts. Last year over 50 musicians and groups performed in the Laurel.
The festival is a project of the Laurel Village Association, a nonprofit neighborhood association. A dedicated, all-volunteer committee meets year-round to plan and organize the event. We partner with local merchants, organizations, and individuals to bring the free festival to the neighborhood. We thank all the musicians, volunteers, donors, neighbors, and patrons for their past and future support and participation.
If you are or know a musician or musical group who would like to perform, email us at laurelssmf\@gmail.com. If you would like to participate as a volunteer during the planning phase or the day of the festival, contact Shel Wald at rochellewald\@comcast.net. We also seek festival underwriters and raffle-prize donors of goods and services to help defray the costs of equipment rental, printing programs and posters, and other expenses. Please contact Renais Winter at winterstone\@mindspring.com.
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Trattoria Laurellino's
'By now you probably know that we have a new neighborhood Italian restaurant. Chef-owner Terrell Santiago opened Trattoria Laurellino's (or Laurellino's, for short) serving rustic Italian dishes. Since the soft opening on March 6, a steady stream of expectant and hungry patrons have come and returned to the friendly and cozy restaurant tucked beside the Laurel Office Building.
'On the second night after the opening, Terrell's partner Ursula said that they were happy and grateful for the community's support. "We wanted to have a soft opening before the grand opening," she said, "to get the rhythm of opening a new restaurant in the neighborhood. For instance, yesterday so many ordered calamari that today we ran out of it. We didn't know that it would be so popular."
'The menu lists a wide selection of appetizers, pastas, salads and entrees, and includes a children's menu. The comfortable restaurant has new large windows that look onto the street and will include a new outdoor seating area. There is a parking lot next door (also home to the Saturday morning Laurel District Farmers' Market) and ample nearby street parking.
'Be sure to check out the positive buzz'on the Laurel Village listserv and Laurellino's newly created Yelp.com page before you go.
Earth Day
Once again the Laurel Village Association will team up with the Allendale Park Neighborhood Council at the pocket park at Delaware St. and 35th Ave. Volunteer between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 18 with the same folks who planted thousands of daffodil bulbs at the freeway ramps, pocket park, and 35th Ave. street medians. Contact Jo-Ann Donivan at jjdon\@pacbell.net.
Laurel Elementary Orators
After taking home first-place medals in the regional semifinals of the MLK Oratorical Fest last month, Ms. Karen Graf's fourth-grade class went on to the finals March 13, winning second place accolades in the choral-speaking category. Go Lions!