Were you disappointed that the much-hyped Woodstock 50 festival in upstate New York never made it ‘out of the gate’? Well, there’s now an alternative. A Bronx American Legion Post has announced its plans to highlight the anniversary of the greatest music festival of all time.
On Saturday, August 17, the Samuel Young American Legion Post 620, located at 1530 Hutchinson River Parkway, will host a ‘Woodstock 50’ event to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the 1969 music festival.
The Woodstock commemoration event will take place from 3 to 11 p.m. on Post 620’s great lawn and will feature a live outdoor music concert, the viewing of the Woodstock documentary film and activities for kids such as necklace making, face-painting and spin art.
The live outdoor music concert will run from 3 to 7:30 p.m., followed by the Woodstock documentary film at 8 p.m., which will be shown on a 15-foot outdoor screen with concert audio sound. Food and refreshments will be sold at the event.
“We host a lot of events and this one is a great way to honor the many veterans who were in Vietnam at the time and didn’t get the opportunity to experience Woodstock,” said Owen Mangan, first commander of the Samuel Young American Legion Post 620.
“Although this is a family event, we wanted to host a celebration to also honor veterans, particularly those who served in Vietnam during that time,” said Joe Mondello, veterans advocate and first district commander of American Legion Post 620. “The Vietnam-era vets who were overseas during Woodstock will get a Woodstock-themed experience with music, art and history.”
“This event will also give the Woodstock generation, most of whom are now in their 60s, a chance to reminisce while they watch the documentary or when they hear different songs from that era – on the actual anniversary,” Mondello added.
Notable artists and bands who performed at Woodstock included the Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, Sly and the Family Stone, The Who, Jefferson Airplane and Jimi Hendrix, among others.
It is estimated that over 400,000 attended the Woodstock music festival, which took place between August 15 and August 17, 1969 at an alfalfa farm in Bethel, New York, about 40 miles west of the town Woodstock in Ulster County.
