UPDATE: THE EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED DUE TO RAIN: IT WILL BE ON SUNDAY, MAY 26.
May 24, 2013 By Bill Parry
Sunnyside, Queens: This Saturday is the Memorial Day Fair at Sunnyside Gardens Park and its organizers have grown obsessed with the weather.
“I’ve been watching the long-range forecasts for the last month,” said Julie Simonsen, a Sunnyside Gardens Park member and event organizer.
Another organizer, Dawn Sweetman, said: “Last I saw there’s a 50% chance of showers,” she said, adding: “I hope it just blows over.”
The Memorial Day Fair draws nearly 1,000 attendees each year and it’s a major fundraiser for members of Sunnyside Gardens Park. “We’d hate to have to push it back to Sunday’s rain date because fewer people would attend,” Simonsen said.
Fundraising is essential, since members—with help from sponsors–bear the cost of maintaining the private park.
“It was built in 1925 so infrastructure is an ongoing and costly issue,” said Simonsen. “Fundraising is extremely important to keep the park in great shape and safe for the children,” she added.
The Memorial Day fair gets underway at 12:15 pm with a flag raising by members of the Armed Forces.
Over the course of the afternoon, there will be arts & crafts (including kite-making), a kiddie nail salon, face-painting and temporary tattoos.
A Dixie land band will perform–while Silly Billy the Clown, who appears regularly on David Letterman’s show, will wander the grounds. Entertainers from the Big Apple Circus will join in the fun. There will be a bouncy house and rock climbing.
For the adults there will be plenty of wine and beer along with a big barbeque. “We went big with the barbeque,” Simonsen said, adding, “We bought 500 burgers. That’s why we’re concerned about a washout.”
Admission to the event is free. For the first time credit and debit cards can be used to purchase food and children’s items.
####
DETAILS: The event starts this Saturday, May 25, from 12: 15 through 5:00pm at Sunnyside Gardens Park. The park is located at 48-21 39th Avenue.
Rain date: Sunday, May 26.
Featured Events
18 Comments
Oppressed Masses sounds like a nut.
Oppressed Masses – you can go bock & reference any article on Sunnyside Post’s forum to read verbatum exactly what comments that I entered here on this forum. It is apparent that you are mentally ill and like twisting everybody’s words here. I have NEVER mentioned harming you. You mentioned in one article how much ‘fun’ you are and I said, I am sure that you are loads of fun, but I would never stand IN FRONT of you on a subway platform. This is the truth. Especially now after reading you comments of abuse on animals, in this case dogs. If you would harm a dog, then your next stop would be to harm a human. I won’t even comment about your obsession with Rick Duro. I agree with Joe O’Sullivan above. It has been published as a fact that most serial killers start out abusing animals. Fellow Sunnyside residents should beware that there is a very evil and mentally disturbed person amongst them. Now I see even more so why people post anonymously on this forum. Please seek the help you need, Oppressed Masses.
We’re allowed to comment as invitees on this site, so the publisher can run it anyway he wants. However, there’s something wrong when comments by Sunnyside Native stating that she is going to push me on the 7 train tracks and comments by Rick Duro stating that he is going to commit acts of violence against me by grinding my face into the sidewalk and physically beat me on the street are allowed to stand while an expression of personal opinion concerning dogs in general, i.e., no direct threat against a particular dog, is removed. I’m not surprised though that there’s a greater sensitivity to statements about dogs than statements regarding humans since our elected representative has by word and action made a recreational facility for dogs a higher priority than educational programs for children.
good point, Joe.
RD
I can’t see what Oppressed Masses wrote, but it concerns me to hear what he said about scalding dogs with hot water. It’s a known fact that most serial killers start out abusing animals.
Freedom of Speech! Let’s not ban what he says. It’s an open forum.
Even though his compulsive, nonsensical attacks on everything dog, regardless as to how completely unrelated the article may be, are highly annoying and bizarre, he has the right to speak his ‘mind’.
RD
You really are obsessed with me, OM! Now you’re wearing my name across your chest?
I’m concerned! Maybe it’s time to call in the padded wagon?! I think we all know the appopriate Ralph Kramden quote to use here.
RD
Thank you for editing Oppressed Masses comments! You both are gentlemen and you did the right thing!
Christian & Bill – you should really ban Oppressed Masses from posting comments on your forum if he is going to encourage animal abuse. You should have a ZERO tolerance policy on people posting about animal abuse. Anybody who talks about imagining dogs being boiled in scalding water is a complete & utter nut job. I tried to tell you people. Be careful when you see the man on the park bench with the pet pigeon. NOTE: Not to be confused with Robert who is a bird lover and who is a truly kind soul. Unlike Oppressed Masses. He has no soul…
Native, attending this event will be like heaven on earth for both of us. For me, not having to deal with dogs anywhere on the grounds, no worries about a dog sniffing at my crotch or taking a dump where people walk. For you, not having to contend with young men of a different national origin than your national origin kicking soccer balls, running around like maniacs, and betting on equaball games. It would be my honor to treat you to a hot dog. You should be able to spot me, I’ll be wearing a full neck white tee shirt with the image of Sophia’s award winning Rick the Wonder Dog poster silk screened on the front, with the message “Rick Says Pick Up Your S**t” emblazoned above the image. I’m looking forward to it!
I didn’t know that. I’m sure they didn’t either or they wouldn’t have done it. I’m a member of this organization. And I know they have great respect for the neighborhood–or they wouldn’t be working so hard to make it nice!
Too bad this community organization has blanketed every lamppost and mailbox with their signs. Posting is against the law – $100 fine per sign. Sorry to see they have so little respect for the neighborhood.
Oppressed Masses will be happy to assist in setting up tables or lend a hand while he is at the fair. He will be the one wearing a sandwich board that says, “Will work for bird feed.”
I understand that SUDS members will be picketing on 39th Ave. to protest the Park’s strict no dogs rules. I saw a sign yesterday by the entrance to the Park, “Dogs – Not Here, Go To 43rd and Skillman”.
Can Oppressed Masses attend with his pet pigeon?
HI Everyone! Due to the weather, we’ve had to postpone the Memorial Day Fair to Sunday, May 26th from 12-5 p.m. We hope you will join us!
I just saw someone posting raindate stickers on the posters for the event on Skillman. Perhaps you can check with them to see if it’s Saturday or Sunday.
What did the 2012 fair look like?