The town of Los Alamos is closing out the month of September with its annual celebration of western heritage, Los Alamos Valley Old Days, which this year will be overseen by Los Alamos Old Days Grand Marshals Sheila Glaser and John Traller.
Both veteran members of the Los Alamos Valley Men’s Club, the nonprofit that organizes the festival, Ms. Glaser serves as the club’s vice president andMr. Traller is editor of the Men’s Club Monthly Newsletter. The 2019 festival will celebrate the 73rd anniversary of the LAVMC and the 58th year of Old Days.
A resident of Los Alamos since she moved to the town with her family in 1993, Ms. Glaser joined the LAVMC in 1996 and has served on several of the club’s event and initiative committees. In a press release, Ms. Glaser said her “heart has belonged to the Men’s Club for more than two decades” and expressed gratitude at the opportunity to serve as grand marshal along with Mr. Traller.
“John has been my right-hand man through all of my years as Vice President of the Club. I’m honored to have been nominated as this year’s Grand Marshal, alongside John,” she said.
Mr. Traller has lived in Los Alamos since moving to the town in 2004 after a 50-year career of working a tax CPA, 20 of which also included teaching federal taxation at UCSB. In addition to his current position editing the club’s newsletter, his past involvement includes serving as one of its board members and as its treasurer.
During the latter, he was instrumental in securing the LAVMC’s philanthropic 501(c)3 tax exempt status. Outside of the Men’s Club, Mr. Traller also has nonprofit experience as the president of Kiwanis Club of Ventura and Rotary Club of the Santa Ynez Valley.
Calling Old Days both a “time for celebration” and one for “reflection on our previous year’s efforts,” he hopes the festival will be a can’t-miss event each year it is held.
“We hope that visitors enjoy the festivities as much as we do, and that they return to celebrate with us every year,” he said.
The 2019 Los Alamos Valley Old Days festival will be held Sept. 27-29. A preliminary event schedule will soon be posted online at www.LAVMC.org, according to the news release.
The weekend’s first day will begin with a chili cook-off and silent auction from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Men’s Club, 429 Leslie St. All proceeds from tickets and the auction will go toward benefiting local youth and families.
Festival events on Sept. 28 will include the Old Days Classic Car Show, which will showcase vintage cars, imports, hotrods, race cars, and motorcycles on Bell Street in downtown Los Alamos from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.,hand-crafted artwork and collectibles will be sold at the Peddlers’ Mart along Bell Street. Children 3 to 7 years old can enjoy activities in the Old Days Family Fun Zone. Both will be held during the same timeframe on Sunday.
At 3 p.m. a game of bingo will be held at the corner of Bell Street and St. Joseph Street and the day will conclude with a tri-tip dinner and dance at the Men’s Club starting at 6:30 p.m. and extending to midnight.
At 9:30 a.m. Sept. 29, attendees can begin the celebration’s last day by either taking part in the Old Days “Stampede” 5K Run/Walk or a nondenominational worship service led by the Rev. Warren Einolander in Ferrini Park.
The 5K run will start at Ferrini Park with registration from 8 to 9:15 a.m. From 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., the “Greatest Little Small Town Parade” will proceed west down Bell Street and end at St. Joseph Street.
Immediately after, a tri-tip beef barbecue lunch will be held at the Men’s Club, with tickets available for sale at the door.
The bingo finale will take place at 3 p.m. in Ferrini Park and the 58th annual Old Days celebration will conclude at 5 p.m.
