The event was a press conference for the third annual "Summer Evenings in the Park" series in Fall River, Massachusetts, held on June 20, 2023, at Griffin Park. Speakers included Patrick from The Narrows, Mayor Paul Coogan, Jeff Bradley from Bristol County Savings Bank, and Patty Rigo from Viva Fall River. The series, which began three years prior after an incident at Griffin Park, aims to connect people in neighborhoods through free, family-centric events featuring art, music, food, an ice cream truck, and groceries provided by the Affordable Food Pantry and Citizens for Citizens. Bristol County Savings Bank was a key sponsor, presenting a $10,000 check to support the initiative. Jeff Bradley, representing the bank, highlighted their commitment to community involvement. Mayor Coogan noted the growing attendance and the expansion of events to eight parks this year, with hopes to include the City Pier in the future. Patty Rigo of Viva Fall River expressed enthusiasm for the series, emphasizing its role in showcasing Fall River's vibrant spirit and diverse neighborhoods. The series is set to kick off on July 5th at Griffin Park, with the full schedule available online. Maureen Flanagan from Senator Roderick's office was also acknowledged for his support.
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Council
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well the good news is it's not raining today right it's been raining the last few weeks and man we would so glad to be able as I say I was telling you we got the band back together for this one this is our third year in a row that we've done this summer evenings in the park and this event started um really with a chance meeting with Paul at barcelo's Bakery on Bedford Street about three
0:20years ago and that conversation took place after there was an incident here at Griffin Park we were trying to think of a way that we could kind of enliven and connect people in neighborhoods and we concocted this idea we weren't sure it was going to work but it's worked and it wouldn't work without the partners I really want to just thank first of all Bristol County Savings Bank for their
0:40generous support of this event it's a free event but it costs money to put on and without them we wouldn't be able to do it and I also want to thank our important Partners CD Rec Grace Girling and her team they feed everybody at this event this is a holistic event we provide art music food an ice cream truck and every family goes home with a bag of groceries I know we partnered
0:59with the great affordable food pantry and citizens for Citizens they both provide groceries for everyone so it's a feel-good event that think most importantly it connects people to the community and we wouldn't be able to do this without support of the city and I'd like to turn it over to my good friend Paul Coogan uh thanks Patrick as Patrick said this is the third year we're doing this with
1:22the crowd seems to get bigger and bigger every year uh if you get a chance please attend one they're all over the city I think we're in eight Parks this year uh there's music food the city will do everything they can to support events like this and again I want to thank all good good friends at Bristol County Savings Bank they always come through when there's an event for the city and
1:41of course Grace and her crew which I'll do a lot of the uh nuts and bolts things to make these things successful we're going to keep them going we're going to keep them bigger and we're going to combine them with some other things as the year goes on in other areas of the city we hope like especially on the City Pier but uh with that being said I'm going to turn it over to our friends
2:01from Bristol County Savings Bank um to come on down and say a few words Jeff Bradley thank you mayor uh and good morning uh what a beautiful beautiful day here in Fall River to uh to announce this uh concert series once again I'd like to take a moment to also acknowledge one of my colleagues Joe medeiris uh vice president and head of small business banking and government Partnerships uh
2:27with the bank and she's based right here in Fall River so I want to welcome Joan this morning as well on behalf of everyone at the bank I do want to say how proud We Are once again to partner with the Narrows in the city of Fall River for this year's edition of Summer evenings in the park this initiative featuring free quality family-centric entertainment brought directly right here into the
2:50neighborhoods of Fall River with such a success last year that we absolutely knew we had to come back and support this Encore performance you see the bank gravitates towards events like this because as a mutual Community Bank we believe that the communities are our stakeholders and this allows us to put a premium on being actively involved in the community in fact it's the bank's mission to support
3:15our community and making it a better place to live and work with our banks Branch right here in Fall River and downtown we're always looking ways to work together with the city schools and non-profits like the Narrows uh to to meet the growing needs of our population and to support the local economy and what better way to bring people together than the Arts that's why we're so excited this morning
3:40to be presenting this check for ten thousand dollars to help support summer evenings in the park we hope that with this support we can make Wednesday nights here in Fall River in July and August a highlight for Fall River families throughout the community is it John yeah Jones check yeah Patrick in the mayor we probably come right here in front of us all right who's choreographing
4:20hi Colin all right I just wanted to say thank you okay that I'd have you hello everybody I'm Patty Rigo from viva Fall River I just wanted to say a couple words um because I love this event series it's one of my favorites and I look forward to it every year this event series embodies the vibrant spirit and Community Pride that really defines our remarkable City on behalf of Eva Fall River I'm delighted once again to
4:50partner in bringing this extraordinary event series to our city Viva Fall River firmly believes in the power of collaboration and creating opportunities to bring our community together this event series encapsulates The Essence of our mission by providing a platform for residents to connect explore different parts of our beautiful city and engage in activities that cater to individuals
5:11of all ages we are excited to showcase the unique and diverse neighborhoods of Fall River to visitors and our South Coast neighbors inviting them to discover the hidden gems and experience the warm Hospitality our city has to offer together we can make a lasting impact and continue to build a vibrant and connected Community I look forward to a successful and memorable summer evenings in the Park series and I hope
5:34to see the sun shining and smiling faces on July 5th when we kick it off here at Griffin Park thank you everybody I also do want to acknowledge uh Maureen Flanagan from Senator roderick's office did join us today because he's a key supporter of a lot of the events that go on in Fall River over the summer and we couldn't do a lot of them without his help so we appreciate that also and
5:57obviously I can't say enough about Bristol County Savings Bank they help us with the Christmas concert they help us with Summer evenings in the park they have a bunch of stand-up individuals who support Fall River in a very strong way and I can't forget the Narrows and CD record Partners we want to acknowledge all the people that helped put this on we're going to have a great summer
6:17hopefully it's great weather and we hope to see you in the Parks the schedule will be up on our board and all over the website so thanks everybody for coming out today