Tag: community

Coronado lifeguard tower honors hometown hero.

In Coronado, Lifeguard Tower 1B on the beach of Glorietta Bay Park honors a hometown hero. A plaque on the tower is In Loving Memory of Justin Allen Meek.

I noticed the plaque during a walk. Wanting to learn more about Justin Allen Meek, I found this article.

Justin, who grew up in Coronado, not only became a lifeguard, but he lived a remarkable life. He was a hero in many respects to those in Coronado and beyond. There were numerous accomplishments. He became an Eagle Scout at a young age. Through the years he actively worked to help the community in a wide variety of ways. He wanted to unselfishly serve others.

Tragically, he perished at age 23 while trying to protect others during a mass shooting at Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks.

If you’d like to see this plaque for yourself, walk down toward the water at Glorietta Bay Park in Coronado, then pause on the sand at the lifeguard tower.

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Sing Christmas carols with Balboa Park’s carillon!

If you happen to be in San Diego and you love singing Christmas carols, a special event is coming up in Balboa Park that you don’t want to miss!

Carol Along with the Carillon will take place in the Old Globe’s outdoor Copley Plaza on Saturday, November 29, 2025, between 12:30 and 1:30 pm.

Family, neighbors and friends will gather to sing beloved holiday songs, accompanied by the California Tower’s carillon. Lyric sheets will be provided so that you’ll know the words to every Christmas carol!

When I participated a few years ago two dozen popular carols were included. This year, the Ramona Community Singers and the Tremble Clefs will join the public again, so you know it will sound amazing!

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

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Photos of Veterans Day Parade in Escondido!

The 6th Annual Veterans Day Parade was held today in downtown Escondido. Residents of various neighboring cities came together to enjoy what has been renamed the North County VetFest and Veterans Day Parade.

In the mid-morning I stood with spectators along North Broadway at the edge of Grape Day Park. A group assembled on the street in front of Review Stand 1 sang the National Anthem. Then a minute or two later…here came the parade!

Over fifty units would pass by to cheers and applause. There were community organizations, clubs, schools with marching bands, church groups, politicians, scouts, cadets, pageant and rodeo queens, firefighters, equestrian groups, local businesses… But most importantly, there were the honored Veterans.

Veterans from many generations and wars, who’ve sacrificed for all of us, waved from passing classic cars, vintage ambulances, trailers and other vehicles. They received the greatest applause.

I photographed many of the passing units. I’m now going to share a fraction of my shots from the parade. Some of the best ones.

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

Many amazing murals at Balderrama Park in Oceanside!

If you enjoy viewing beautiful outdoor murals, you’ll be astounded by those in Oceanside at Joe Balderrama Park. Over 45 murals decorate structures throughout the public park, including the Balderrama Recreation Center and Chavez Community Resource Center!

The murals, completed late last year, primarily celebrate the Hispanic and Indigenous heritages of many who live in the neighborhood. Diverse other backgrounds and ethnicities are included, too. Bold cultural imagery is intermingled with messages of hope.

The lead artist was renowned muralist Joanne Tawfilis. A couple dozen local artists and many local school children contributed to the massive project!

Here’s a good article about the Balderrama Park murals’ origin and dedication.

I walked around the park last weekend and was totally wowed. Take a look at these photographs! The collection of bold murals might not be on the immense scale of San Diego’s world-famous Chicano Park, but the experience is similar in many respects.

I proceeded with my camera in a counter-clockwise direction. I’m afraid I missed one mural on the tennis courts fence because someone was seated directly in front of it and I didn’t want to intrude.

Here we go…

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

SDMA Artists Guild exhibit opens in Balboa Park!

Today the finishing touches were being put on a new exhibition of outstanding art in Balboa Park. The San Diego Museum of Art Artists Guild Membership Exhibition is now open in Spanish Village Art Center’s Gallery 21!

Several of the participating artists were in the gallery and were happy to talk about their creations. I learned the public is invited to attend the show’s official reception on Sunday, November 9 from 2:00 to 4:00 pm. Learn more here.

The San Diego Museum of Art Artists Guild strengthens the bond between the Museum and the artist community of San Diego County by enhancing the Museum’s awareness and appreciation of local artists.

Their annual exhibition in Balboa Park will continue through November 17, 2025. Diverse works in many styles are on display. All of the pieces are for sale.

The exhibition was juried by Johnny Tran of the Thumbprint Gallery in La Jolla. I think you’ll really enjoy it.

Some photos, and friendly guild artists I met today…

Artist Charlene Mosley smiles beside her oil on canvas piece, This Is All That Is Me.
Artist Olga Freedman’s very beautiful watercolor Aspen grove near Lake Sabrina.
James Bliesner is both artist and President of San Diego Museum of Art Artists Guild. His half-abstract/half-realistic piece is Wind and Sea. Materials are plaster, paper, acrylic, pastel and oil.

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

Photos of Day of the Dead in City Heights!

A beautiful Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) event was held today in San Diego’s City Heights neighborhood. Everyone gathered at Officer Jeremy Henwood Memorial Park to remember loved ones who’ve passed on from this world.

The highlight of the event was the many traditional altars (ofrendas) that honored family and ancestors.

After an introduction to the event and a blessing with the fragrant smoke of white sage, Mariachi Cardenal of Hoover High School took the stage and provided live entertainment.

There were creative activities for kids. Many lowriders were lined up to one side of the festival, and there was a Best Catrina Outfit Contest. Good old Fern Street Circus was there, as was the San Diego Guild of Puppetry. Community organizations present included the San Diego Library, San Diego Youth Services, City Heights Music School…

The sun was out and hearts were full.

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

Native American Heritage Festival in Escondido!

The First Annual Native American Heritage Festival was held this afternoon in Escondido’s Grape Day Park.

The free community event was hosted by the Native Youth Foundation and featured Native American culture, education, crafts, food, music and fun for the entire family.

The festival brought together tribes from around the Southern California region to honor Indigenous Peoples’ Day. It was a celebration of Native voices shaping the future.

I came by in the late afternoon as the festival was kicking off. When I departed about an hour later, a good crowd had gathered for this inaugural event.

I enjoyed listening to the Campo Bird Singers, visiting various booths and eating crispy tacos.

What are some of the things I learned?

I learned the people in the next photo represent Volunteer Escondido. They’re neighbors who come together to help build a stronger community and enhance the quality of life for all!

You can visit their website here! Check out their event calendar and perhaps you can participate as a volunteer in their good work!

I was interested to learn from the next group of smiling people that there is a National Native American Hall of Fame!

The organization, with its headquarters in Oklahoma City, honors Native American achievements in contemporary society, from the 1860s to present day!

Visit their website here! There are various ways that you can support them!

Look! More friendly people at the next booth!

They represent the La Jolla Generations Program, a tribal youth program of the La Jolla Band of Luiseño Indians.

They would be demonstrating basketmaking later during the festival!

In the late morning, the Campo Bird Singers were on stage performing traditional, sacred Bird Songs.

Lots of tasty food, including carne asada and Kumeyaay frybread!

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

La Jolla’s historic Post Office and the New Deal.

In ten years the historic post office in the Village of La Jolla will celebrate its 100th anniversary.

It’s very fortunate the 1935 building has been preserved. The result of a Great Depression-era works program, the post office was threatened by a planned U.S. Postal Service downsizing in 2011. The historic building was saved by an outpouring of community activism.

The handsome La Jolla Post Office was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2013 and remains a beloved landmark in La Jolla at 1140 Wall Street.

The architectural style is considered Mission Revival. You can read about its construction and history on the Living New Deal website here.

It’s interesting to note the building’s plaque states the La Jolla Post Office’s creation was the result of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The Living New Deal website, however, states it was the Public Works Administration (PWA). The two were separate programs.

Inside the post office lobby, a beautiful New Deal-era mural was painted by renowned local artist Belle Baranceanu. The art shows a hilly panorama of La Jolla and the Pacific Ocean. If you’d like to see photos of the mural, click here!

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

Free help to repair your bike in San Diego!

Does your bicycle need repair? Do you live anywhere near City Heights in San Diego? Check out this free, very cool community resource!

Bikes del Pueblo operates on Sundays near the corner of El Cajon Boulevard and 40th Street. You can see them in action in these photographs.

The collective is a bunch of volunteers and neighbors who get together to maintain bicycles and help each other. They provide free educational workshops, and access to tools and bicycle parts. Some of the regular participants have a lot of experience repairing bikes and are happy to help. Bikes del Pueblo welcomes donations–bicycles, parts, and money–to help keep a good thing going.

When I walked by a few weekends ago, they were really busy! Some people were even hanging out at the picnic benches and enjoying the sunny day. What a great resource for a community that can be underserved.

Got a bike? Does it need some work? Check out their website for more info by clicking here!

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

History Center exhibit: San Diego’s Lost Neighborhoods.

A new exhibition recently opened at the San Diego History Center in Balboa Park. San Diego’s Lost Neighborhoods takes a look at African-American communities that have been substantially altered, injured, or uprooted by practices such as redlining or urban development over the years.

San Diego’s Lost Neighborhoods is made possible with the help of the San Diego African American Museum of Fine Art (SDAAMFA).

Communities from Downtown to City Heights to La Jolla . . . and even to Julian in our local mountains have painful stories to tell. These stories can be understood through many old photographs, the words of residents affected by racial discrimination, and by viewing historical maps of affected neighborhoods.

Visitors to the exhibit could and should spend a good while taking it all in.

Yes, change over time constitutes history–but change too often has been self-serving, mean-spirited or unnecessarily destructive.

May we all be kind. Hopefully we learn from the past.

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!