San Jose’s 106-year tradition of honoring veterans will continue, as a community fundraising campaign has brought in more than enough to ensure the downtown ceremony and parade take place Nov. 11 as planned.
Just a few weeks ago, the long-running event was in danger of cancellation after the previous organizer failed to get enough sponsorships and other fundraising in time. But retired U.S. Army Col. Ray Watts, who heads up the local chapter of Military Officers Association of America, quickly stepped in and assembled a team to close an estimated $80,000 funding gap.
In my column about the crisis, I mentioned that developer and philanthropist Chuck Toeniskoetter contributed $10,000. That was just the tip of the iceberg. The Rotary Club of San Jose put in $5,000 and encouraged its members to contribute; the Brandenburg Family Foundation donated $15,000; LS Power Grid California pledged $10,000; DEVCON Construction came through with $20,000, and PG&E contributed $25,000. (And for those wondering, PG&E philanthropic contributions come from shareholder money, not ratepayers.)
James Reber, executive director of the San Jose Parks Foundation, said another $10,000 came in from individuals through its fundraising portal. The Parks Foundation again served as fiscal agent for the parade and waived its fees. “As a Navy veteran, it gives me great pride to be part of it,” Reber said.
Now, it’s just a matter of getting all the marching bands, scouting units, elected officials and veterans groups lined up for the event, which began as a celebration of the armistice that ended World War I on Nov. 11, 1918. The opening ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. at the reviewing stands in front of Plaza de Cesar Chavez, and the parade will kick off from near SAP Center at noon, traveling down Santa Clara and Market streets to the plaza.
You can get more information — and sign up your parade unit if you haven’t already done so — at www.sjveteransparade.org.
LIVELY WEEKEND: Día San Jose — which has become one of the biggest Day of the Dead celebrations around — takes place Saturday at Plaza de Cesar Chavez. Yes, that’s two weeks before Día de los Muertos itself happens Nov. 1-2, but it’s never too early to start celebrating, right?
The cultural celebration will include the Chicano Art Mercado, live art making and traditional altars set inside the trunks of lowrider cars. You can be there’ll be plenty of food, and lots of entertainment, too, including folklorico dancing, pro wrestling, mariachis and Chicano songwriter/musician Flaco El Jandro. It runs from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., and tickets are available at the gate ($10 adults, $5 students and free for 12 and under).
CULTURE ON FILM: The 10th annual Silicon Valley Asian Pacific FilmFest, presented by Contemporary Asian Theater Scene (CATS), will be drawing crowds this weekend to the AMC DINE-IN Sunnyvale 12. Friday’s opening night screening of “Home Court,” directed by Erica Tanamachi, is already sold out, but there are tickets available for an encore screening Nov. 1.
In the meantime, you can check out the rest of the festival’s features and shorts over the weekend, which includes a screening Saturday morning of “Builders of the Silicon Dream,” about the impact Asian immigrants had on the growth of Silicon Valley. On Sunday, the highlights include “Kintsukuroi” by Bay Area filmmaker Kerwin Berk, about two families affected by the U.S. internment of Japanese during World War II and “Nobuko Miyamoto: A Song in Movement,” a film about the 84-year-old Japanese activist and dancer, who will perform live after the screening.
You can get ticket and schedule information at svapfilmfest.org.
GOOGLE IT: The Google Visitor Experience in Mountain View is rolling into its first anniversary in style with Skate & Celebrate, taking place Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. at the Gradient Canopy at 2000 N. Shoreline Blvd. Besides skating along with San Francisco’s Church of 8 Wheels, visitors can play retro arcade games and enjoy small bites from the cafe.
