A Handy Update

Hands Around the Lake, is just around the corner - come join over 1,400 1,700 + (the number just keeps growing!!) fellow Fremont residents as we join hands around the entire Lake Elizabeth!

Have you registered yet?? If not, the great news is that you have some choices! You can still register via the the Hands Around the Lake registration form OR you can drop by the Celebrate Fremont. If you've already registered, come by the office to pick up your t-shirts then you'll be all set for Saturday, Sept 9th.

Be sure to get to the Lake early on Saturday morning, so that you will have ample time to get in position. You may want to bring some sunscreen and a lawn chair. Are you ready for this fantastic historical event? We sure are excited!


The Celebrate Fremont office is located at:

4589 Eggers Dr, Fremont, CA
(510) 790-9352

Click Here for Office Hours for picking up T-shirts
Click Here for Directions



For more info check out the nifty Hands Around the Lake Power Point deck! See you there!

Shake Rattle & Roll

For any native of California, earthquakes are a part of life. Ever wonder what causes an earthquake? Well here's your chance to find out - The USGS and 1906 Earthquake Centennial Alliance have opened up The Hayward Fault Exposed! at Central Park in Fremont!

The exhibit is open Saturday and Sunday from 10am - 3pm and runs through October. The best part is that the swell folks over at the Hayward Fault Exhibit have extended hours from 9am - 6pm, during Celebrate Fremont at the Park which is September 9th and 10th!

This is your chance to see the fault up close and personal, as you walk down to excavation site to see the fault line that's causes so much commotion! Big shout out to our mutual sponsors Robson Homes, Summerhill Homes, the Oakland A's and NUMMI for making the exhibit possible!

Fremont Tomorrow

The Future team has a bunch of fun planned for the September 9,10 event in the "Fremont Tomorrow" section of the park!

Over 2000 surveys were collected and counted over the last year. The survey asked Fremontonians, "What do you want the future of Fremont to look like?" The survey results will come alive at the "Street of Dreams" at the park! Top survey results include: BART to San Jose, more open spaces, better after school programs, a more upscale shopping and restaurants and much more. The Future team has literally and physically created this "Street of Dreams" for you. There will be a performing arts center with entertainment, a schoolhouse where families can learn how to write poetry, and even a city hall where you can have your say about the future of Fremont!

"Fremont Tomorrow" will also have local companies like NUMMI, AC Transit, and BART will also bring their latest innovations, green projects, and state of the art technology to the Future area. You'll get to see the new hydrogen fueled bus, a green car, and much more!

CERT and Fremont's finest are coming together to provide emergency preparedness training for all of Fremont's families. On September 9,10, you'll be able to learn what to do in case of an earthquake, fire, or other natural disasters. This is important stuff!!!

The team is also helping to put together a contest! This is going to be a lot of fun! When you register, you'll be given a stamp card. Find the Chaplins scattered around the park, get your card stamped, and win lots of cool prizes!!!

See Fremont ...

... like you've never seen it before!!



The Celebrate Fremont's Heritage team will be hosting another awesome bus tour this weekend on Saturday August 26.

The Mission San Jose and Warm Springs tour will run from 10:30 am to 12:30 pm.
The Irvington tour will run from 1 pm to 3pm.

Meet us in Niles at the intersection of Niles Blvd & “I” Street at the Veterans Commemorative Flagpole!

There's a lot to learn and many landmarks to see --some that are big and in plain sight and others that are nestled away in subtle corners of Fremont's Mission San Jose, Warm Springs, and Irvington districts.

To sign up, click here.

Each Heritage Tour is $20.00 per passenger.
Students and Seniors(65+) $15.00 – save $5
"$60 Four Pack" – good for one person taking all four tours, or for four guests attending one tour together - save $20.
"$50 Family Pack" – good for two adults and two children (under 18) attending a tour together - save $30.
$25 -Young Friends - good for one adult and one child under 18
Additional Youth tickets (under 18) can be purchased for $5 each.

And This Circle . . .

Some say the walls between us stand so tall
They don't see there's just one sun shining on us all
I say we each choose roads to call our own
But none of us is traveling through this universe alone
And this circle just goes on and on
It began before us it will be here when we've gone
And this circle
Just goes on and on and on. Connecting our humanity
Joining me to you and you to me . . .
Lyrics by Jud Friedman, Cynthia Weil

Saturday, September 9 at 9:00 a.m., the Kick Off of our 2 Day Celebrate Fremont @ the Park will begin with Hands Around the Lake.

Imagine 3500 people wearing special orange colored commemorative T-shirts,

joined hand in hand as we circle Lake Elizabeth –



Be sure to be a part of this historic moment of community unity – sign up today. Bring your families, friends, neighbors, colleagues, teams & leagues, scout troops, congregations, service organizations, religious groups, everyone is welcomed.

Special thanks to our exclusive Hands Around the Lake sponsor Fremont Bank, which continues to generously support Celebrate Fremont.

Let’s make history together!

Wanna help out?

Celebrate Fremont @ the Park is going to be awesome!

Come volunteer! There will be many fun opportunities.




You can sign up to help at the following activities:

• Set-up (Friday only)
• Control Center
• Food Area Monitors
• General Runner Water/Soda
• Entertainment Area Gatekeeper/Driver
• Information Booth/Sales
• Communications/Lost & Found
• Wine Tent General
• Wine Tent Pourer [note: if you will be pouring wine, you must be certified]
• Parking/Traffic
• U.S. Post Office Booth
• Merchandising
• Security
• Handicap Cart Driver
• General Help - we will use you where help is needed most

Sign up here!

Everyone is welcome. If you work in Fremont, live in Fremont, or just love Fremont! Come give us a hand!

Have you seen us around town?

We're trying to get the word out.

Help us by telling your family and friends to look out for the signs around town about the big Celebration @ the Park.

We're everywhere!

At Lake Elizabeth's community center...


At the library...


At the Palo Alto Medical Foundation's office in Fremont ...


At Fremont Hub...


And at BART!...

It's a Hit!

10 Reasons why Fremont Day @ the A's was a homerun!

10. Getting to cheer on the A's with over 5,000 Fremontonians
9. Can you say dollar dogs? (not to mention peanuts, ice cream and nachos!)
8. Witnessing the A's 15th win in a row!
7. Seeing Mark Ellis' 3 run homer
6. Getting a free pizza for Mark Ellis's homerun
5. Tailgating with Celebrate Fremont
4. Watching Sue throw out the ceremonial first pitch of the night!
3. Raising $25,645 for Celebrate Fremont @ the Park
2. 30,000 people seeing the Celebrate Fremont logo on the scoreboard!
1. The hope that the A's will come to Fremont one day =)

Check out more pictures from the game in the Fremont Day at the A's gallery! And be sure to vote for Dennis Eckersely in the DHL Home Town Heroes Sweepstakes by clicking here !

Scrumptious food, vibrant colors, tons of fun!

Mmmmm...! Samosas! Kulfi! Tandoori Chicken!

Boy did we have a good time this weekend at the Federation of Indo Americans Festival and Parade. The weekend festival was expected to draw almost 60,000 people. It probably did! The Fremont Courthouse grounds were packed with Indo-Americans from all over the Bay Area. The festival drew an diverse array of Fremontonians too!

The event included a parade, dance performances, and a health fair. Food vendors sold everything from samosas (vegetable-filled Indian pastries) to kulfi (ice cream).Click here to see the pictures!

Celebrate Fremont participated in the parade on Sunday. The birthday cake was a big hit! We won an award for our float! The parade was vibrant with different Indian cultures.

A group of Indians from the island of Fiji spent three days designing a cardboard replica of a train designed to haul sugar cane, the industry that employs many Indian immigrants onthe island.
Nearby, Indo-Americans from the Indian state of Rajasthan rode in a model of the Palace on Wheels Train, a famed luxury train.
A float constructed by members of the Fremont Hindu Temple trailed behind a Jesus-themed caravan built by the International Christian Center of San Jose, whose pastor, Chris Nallan, said included several Indo-American members.
Aboard a float constructed by the Indian youth organization Hindu Sangam's, children acted out the epic story of Ramayana.

The weekend festival is the largest Indo-American festival in the Bay Area. It is always held around August 15th in order to salute to the Indian Independence Day, which was Tuesday.

See You at the Game!

Fremont Day @ the A's is Here!!!

Are you ready to see the A's 15th straight win against the Seattle Mariners? Fremont Day @ the A's is here, be sure to come to the pre-game ceremony which is honoring Celebrate Fremont and it's awesome sponsors, 6:30pm on the pitchers mound at Oakland Coliseum. We're really excited to announce that Celebrate Fremont's own Executive Vice Chair Sue Chan will be throwing out the ceremonial first pitch - come with signs to cheer her on!!! With the help of our corporate sponsors and the A's, Fremont Day at the A's has raised over $25,000 for Celebrate Fremont @ the Park! Big shout out to Phil Chapman and Sean O'Keefe of A's for their dedication and hard work for making this fundraising effort a huge success!

Fremont + A's = happy baseball fans q:)

Come join us at the Library!

Do you know about the ghost town of the salt flats?

Hidden on the edge of the salt flats, Drawbridge was founded in the late 1870s when a narrow gauge railroad was built from Dumbarton Point to Santa Clara, with two swing bridges connecting tiny Station Island to shore. A colorful community developed in this most unlikely environment along the railroad tracks. Come hear the fascinating story of this lost treasure.

The Fremont Main Library has teamed up with Celebrate Fremont to present Drawbridge: Ghost Town of the Salt Flats! It is the eighth program of the speaker series held in honor of Fremont's 50th Anniversary.

Patricia Anthony, a resident specialist on the history of the Drawbridge, will speak at the library on Wednesday, August 16 at 7pm. She will unveil the mysteries of Drawbridge, the unique town of our south bay marshes. Patricia is a volunteer at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge and has worked with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife department since 1982. Patricia has also led many guided tours at Don Edwards and has become a specialist on the history of Drawbridge.

The beauty, the isolation and the intimate bond with humans that defined the life of Drawbridge are reflected in the 9,000 acres of South Bay salt ponds recently acquired by the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. LIke this old town, they are true children of both the surrounding wetlands and of human innovation and impact. But as mother marsh slowly reclaims her child, Drawbridge, we are reminded that she just may need some help with these new lands, which will soon become the focus of the largest wetland restoration ever attempted on the West coast.

The Fremont Main Library is located at 2400 Stevenson Blvd and is wheelchair accessible. No reservations are required! Just come and join us! For an ASL interpreter, call the library at least 7 working days before the event.

For more information, contact the Fremont Main Library at 510-745-1401 or Janet Cronbach at 510-745-1429.

14th Annual Federation of India Festival and Parade

Come enjoy the mouth watering food... the foot tapping music ... energetic dancing ... and the vibrant culture of India this weekend!

The Federation of India (FIA) will be hosting it's annual festival (mela) and parade on Saturday and Sunday, August 12-13 at Paseo Padre Parkway and Walnut ave in Fremont. Be sure to come and check out the Celebrate Fremont float in the parade!

Through the years, the festival has grown from 5,000 people at its inception to about 60,000 last year. This weekend, organizers say they hope to exceed last year's turnout by drawing more of the 300,000 Indo-Americans living in the Bay Area, as well as those who simply want to learn about South Asian culture.
At a time when the children of immigrants from India are assimilating into American culture, the Festival of India helps remind the next generation about their roots, said Yogi Chugh, vice president of the Federation of Indo-Americans of Northern California, which hosts the event.
Although many still see the festival primarily as an event for the Indian diaspora, its organizers hope it also will come to symbolize the diversity of Fremont and the greater Bay Area.

There will be lentil curries, hot out-of-the-oven naan, Bollywood & bhangra dance competitions, clothing exhibitions, and even a medical health fair!

And at about noon on Sunday, you can line up on Liberty and State streets and Beacon and Walnut avenues. This fantastic parade will have floats representing different regions of India and feature legendary Indian actress Poonam Dhillon.

Celebrate Fremont is proud to partner with the Festival of India. Our awesome float will be in the parade! Be sure to wave to us as we pass by!

We can't wait to see you there!

Quilting. Lace making. Railroading. It's Art in the Park!

Come enjoy a day full of fun family activities at Ardenwood Park/Patterson House.

The 5th Annual Art in the Park Event is Saturday, August 12 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Ardenwood Park/Patterson House. It's a great event for the entire family.

It'll be a day full of exciting activities:
- Art exhibits
- Creative art activities for the kids
- Patterson House tours
- Silent film viewing by the Essanay Film museum
- Quilting
- Lace making
- Railroading
- Tours of the garden
- And much more!

And if that wasn't enough...we've got MORE to tell you about!

The morning of Saturday, August 12 will start off with the accordian harmonies of the duo, Gary Breitbard and Jena Rauti. You'll hear French and Italian country-dance music, and even Parisian Musette, Irish jigs and Balkan folk dance tunes.

Then at noon, families can enjoy Marty Atkinson's "homegrown style of storytelling, tasty accompaniment, acoustic guitar, and mandolin."

And then you can stick around to throw up your jazz hands for the Jazzinators! This East Bay Traditional Jazz Society Youth Jazz Band plays for the support of youth scholarships to fund young musicians in the East Bay area who want to study Dixieland jazz.




You can even get a tattoo this saturday! No... not a real one. Mom said no to that!You will be able to get airbrush tattoos at the 5th Annual Art in the Park event between noon and 4pm.

The event is sponsored by:
City of Fremont Parks and Recreation Department
Fremont Cultural Arts Council (FCAC)
East Bay Regional Parks District (EBRPD)

Fremont's 23rd Annual Festival of the Arts

It’s that time of the year again –Fremont Chamber of Commerce’s 23rd Annual Festival of the Arts - the only place to be this weekend! This mega extravaganza is touted to be the largest free street festival west of the Mississippi with an anticipated attendance of over 300,000 visitors!

Talk about a good time for everyone – there is Something for Everyone! How about tasting some great local wines? There’s going to be a Wine Tent for your tasting pleasure! Music, you say? Check out the smooth sounds of R & B to classic Mowtown to Country and beyond; the entertainment will have people dancin’ in the streets.

Feeling hungry? Wanna a great linguisa sandwich? How ‘bout some sushi? Lumpia? Hot dog? Strawberry shortcake? With over 40 different food booths there is something for everyone – ummm, yummy! What’s great about the food is that local non-profit and service groups do some serious fundraising; so every bite you take is helping to do good in the community. Come with a BIG appetite.

There’s going to be a huge Kidzone for the kiddies. Be sure to check out the very popular Firefighter Combat Challenge – that has firefighters from all over the U.S. and Canada competing to show who is the fittest of the fit – get ready to be wow’ed! There’s plenty of arts over 700 booths of artisans displaying an incredible variety of crafts and arts.

Course we’ll be there – come by and check out our Celebrate Fremont booth. We’ll have our famous Art Car and lots of information about all of our activities. Let’s have a chillin’ time at the Festival of the Art! See ya there!

National Night Out

Celebrating Neighborhood Unity

Tuesday, August 1 was Fremont’s Annual National Night Out– this was our 23rd year of being a part of this National Program to promote community unity – exactly what Celebrate Fremont is all about! There were over 125 block parties to check out – talk about a great time had by all – the food was awesome, the music blaring with good vibes, neighbors were out and about getting a chance to get to know each other better, kids laughter filled the air, and everyone was having a jammin’ time!

This annual event is organized by Fremont Police Department – they did an awesome job of registering the parties; coordinating the teams of City staff and citizen volunteers, that went to the various neighborhoods; and getting the goodie bags chock full of information and merchant coupons assembled for distribution. Props to Fremont PD! The Fire Department added excitement to the festivities, especially when the fire trucks showed up to the delight of the kids of all ages.

Celebrate Fremont team members Sue Chan, Snigdha Dhar, Irene Koehler, Gaby Machuca, Anu Natarajan, Jack & Marie Rogers, Bernie Stewart, and Doug Tinney were there to talk up the Fremont Day at the A’s Game, Hands Around the Lake, and our big bash –http://www.celebratefremont.org/park.htmlEveryone was excited to hear about all these great upcoming events! Word’s out!Check out pictures from the event below!

One city, one book

Calling all Fremontonians to Fremont Reads!

"The Fremont Libraries are sponsoring Fremont Reads 2006. The book is PROFILES OF COURAGE BY John F. Kennedy. Hopefully, discussions among friends and strangers of Kennedy's still timely meditation on the nature of courage and selflessness will enhance a sense of community and understanding. Help build community by reading PROFILES OF COURAGE by John F. Kennedy. You can find a copy at one of the Fremont Libraries, at Barnes and Noble or at other area bookstores."

Not sure if you want to invest in the book yet? Read an excerpt on Google books.

You can contact the Fremont Main Library's Information Desk at (510) 745-1401