Summer Fest floods Franklin Avenue with good vibrations

‘DON’T WORRY, BABY’ — Summer arrived in style along Franklin Avenue in downtown Nutley as Summer Fest 2023 returned to the delight of thousands of participants on Thursday, June 22. The annual event featured live music, food trucks, face painters, balloon twister, doggie treats, gaming truck and inflatable rides. Lights Out, shown above while in concert, kicked off the party with a solid set of Beach Boys-themed tunes while Beginnings closed out the evening with a tribute to Chicago, ensuring that an enjoyable time was had by all. — Additional Summer Fest images appear on page 7.

Elks Club has a Duck Race planned for mid-September

The Kearny-Belleville Elks have scheduled an Incredible Duck Race for Saturday, Sept. 16.

The event is free and will include live music, vendors, food trucks, a beer garden and more, according to a press release from the Elks Club.

Money raised through the Duck Race fundraiser helps to support Elks Club programs including scholarships, winter coats and books to children in need, furniture and household supplies to veterans transitioning from homelessness and care packages for patients at the East Orange veterans hospital.

For more information, check out www.INCREDIBLEDUCKRACE.com.

Historical Society restores and cleans gravestones of veterans

Members of the Belleville Historical Society spent several months restoring military and veteran monuments in Belleville and six other neighboring towns.

In the Veterans Circle in Glendale

Cemetery in Bloomfield where 4,500 veterans are buried, the Society identified and cleaned the gravestones of almost 300 soldiers who were killed in World War II, Korea and Vietnam.

Memorials have also been restored in

Nutley, Kearny, Newark, Passaic and Montclair. The projects have ranged from restoring the gravestones of those killed in action to bronze plaques and life size statues. For additional information visit bellevillehistory.org.