Spending Easter on skid row with old friends and new friends as well

Before I write anything I would like to thank Larry Adamson (the President and CEO of The Midnight Mission) and his staff for putting on such a spectacular event.  The event was truly the crown jewel in the Easter / Passover week festivities in which so many of the missions and shelters participated.  As a side note, if you click on the title of this blog entry you will be redirected to The Midnight Mission website where you can get the latest info, see how you may be able to help or donate to a great organization.

I spent April 4, 2010 downtown for Easter Sunday.  Easter weekend is pretty serious business for the missions down in the skid row area of Los Angeles.  Celebrations and activities abounded and the jewel in the crown of the events is hosted by The Midnight Mission. 

From 10am until 3pm 6th Street is closed between San Julian and San Pedro.  A stage is set up for live music and there is a strong focus on Blues with some terrific entertainment.  There are activites for children, art projects, great food including fresh baked goods and even the amazing Easter Bunny!  I do not know if the bunny was male or female but I will say it did not miss a beat during the entire event.  Energy +++ and made the Energizer Bunny look like a light weight!



From the Midnight Mission website on this particular event:

Easter/Passover Celebration 2010!

On Sunday, April 4th our staff, participants, and 200 volunteers come together to create a special brunch and celebration for about 2,000 of our closest friends... this year will be no exception!

We clear the street in front of our facility, set tables and chairs for our 2,000+ guests, most of who happen to be suffering from the condition of homelessness. We have an Easter Village for children, clothing giveaway and live entertainment.

For more information about the event or for sponsorship opportunities please contact, Mai Lee Community Relations Manager 213-624-4588. Volunteer opportunities, send an email to volunteer@midnightmission.org.

The link to the Easter event is http://www.midnightmission.org/frontstory1.asp

The Midnight Mission is quite entrenched in the music community with many supporters in the music industry.  One of these folks is a very close personal friend of over two decades, Norm Harris of Norman's Rare Guitars.  You can learn more about this store which is a part of music history at http://www.normansrareguitars.com/    Norm puts on events to support The Midnight Mission including the donation of artist signed guitars and major concert events.  Norm is a guy that walks the walk.

As a side note before I forget to post the link since I was talking about music, Jeff Beck will be playing for The Midnight Mission.  Here are a few details:

Jeff Beck Live in Concert!  Jeff Beck's show will be held in Los Angeles at the Nokia Theatre on April 17, 2010 at 8 pm.  Exclusive Orchestra tickets, Row W and Up Front Pit tickets, Row 3. Price includes concert ticket and pass to the VIP Lounge.

Jeff Beck is one of the UK's true music heroes, a visionary musician and guitar god admired by everyone from Eric Clapton, who he famously succeeded in The Yardbirds, to Morrissey, on whose new album Beck appears. He is recognized by his peers as perhaps the greatest guitarist of them all and has already been inducted in to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Yardbirds.

Proceeds to benefit The Midnight Mission.  Contact Georgia Berkovich at 213.624.9258 ext 1243.

The website page for this event is - http://www.midnightmission.org/frontstory3.asp
 
I will be posting photos from Easter Sunday on this blog post which means it will be updated over many days with a few of the photos.  I will also provide a link to all of the photos I took at the event and the photo album might take a week or more to complete but some photos will be posted here in smaller format.

The link to the entire photo set is http://www.flickr.com/photos/myles111us/sets/72157623769798512/ but it may be as long as a week before all the photos are uploaded as there are about 100 photos that need to be edited or tossed out in many cases.





Part of the group "Rebellious Blues Dogs". The keyboard player is cropped out of this shot (sorry).

In the center on the red bass is Big Mike, a very cool fellow. At the front of the stage the sharp dressed man in the gray suit is Don Garza. You can find Don on my facebook page in my top friends.

The band can be contacted at stonefre1313@verizon.net and do blues, swing, Latin rhythm and more.



Some folks might recognize LAMP from the movie The Soloist. This is where Nathanial Ayres lives.











In the photo above check out the fellow dancing and the fellow seated with two thumbs up. Great music and terrific folks.

I may post more photos later as they are editied or sorted but if I do not the photos will be uploaded for the next week to http://www.flickr.com/photos/myles111us/sets/72157623769798512/