The Memorial Day weekend couldn’t have been any nicer – flags flying, perfect weather, pool openings, and solemn remembrances of why we observe Memorial Day – to honor the service and sacrifices of our service personnel in all conflicts. The observance at “the cannon” in Annandale, sponsored by American Legion Post 1976, featured the son of a West Pointer, who told the crowd that, although he never wore the uniform, he and his daughters spend every Memorial Day weekend decorating the Arlington Cemetery graves of his father’s many classmates buried there. That is one way, he said, to educate today’s younger generation about the history and sacrifices of not just the service personnel, but also of their families and loved ones. It was a powerful story.

With Memorial Day past, the “social summer” is underway, even if meteorological summer is still three weeks away. For Mason District, summer is concert season. Our first Spotlight by Starlight concert at Mason District Park, featuring The TOAST Big Band, begins this Sunday, June 1, at 7:30 p.m., at Mason District Park, 6621 Columbia Pike in Annandale. Prior to the concert, the Friends of Mason District Park will sponsor a social, with cake and lemonade, at 6:30 p.m. Concerts are held at the Newton Edwards Amphitheatre, with plenty of parking, and free admission. After you enter the park, turn right and drive up the hill to the upper parking lot for easy access. Bench seating is available (bring a cushion or folded towel to make it a little more comfortable), but many people bring folding chairs for the lawn area. There also is an accessible handicapped seating platform for wheelchair users.

Spotlight by Starlight concerts are held on Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday evenings all through the summer, until August 31. The Saturday morning children’s shows, underwritten by the Friends of Mason District Park, begin on June 28 and conclude on August 23. Those shows begin at 10 a.m. For a schedule of free concerts at Mason District Park, and other park facilities across the county, log on to www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/performances.

International music, dancing, and culture are featured on Saturday nights at 7:30 p.m. at Ossian Hall Park, 7900 Heritage Drive in Annandale (across from Annandale High School). Experience the heritage of China, West Africa, Ireland, Bolivia, Vietnam, Korea, and our own Bull Run Cloggers with your neighbors and friends. There is a children’s playground immediately adjacent, so bring a picnic and make it a family outing. Ossian Hall Park has only lawn seating, so bring a comfortable chair, or blanket, to enjoy the evening. I look forward to seeing you there.

The ENDependence Center of Northern Virginia, Inc. (ECNV), a non-profit organization that supports independent living for people with disabilities, will hold its annual awards reception on Wednesday, June 11, at 6:30 p.m., at The Clarendon Ballroom, 3185 Wilson Boulevard in Arlington. ECNV assists many residents in Mason District and Northern Virginia. For tickets and sponsorship information about this worthy effort, call 703/525-3268, or email: Zach@midaassociates.com.

 Penny Gross is the Mason District Supervisor, in the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. She may be emailed at mason@fairfaxcounty.gov.