FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM MAY 17, 2018 • BUZZ • THE QUEENS COURIER 87
FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS
Each spring, hundreds of flags appear along Northern Boulevard d in
Douglaston, Little Neck and beyond. The secret is out.
“We do it,” said retired cop Charles McBride, co-chair of the Little
ttle
Neck-Douglaston Memorial Day Parade Association, as he handed a flag
to a Ral-Bar Electric employee, perched in bucket of one of their
heir
maintenance trucks. “We used to do it at night, but it was just too
dangerous,” he added.
The company is named after founder Ralph Barba and his late wife
wife
Barbara. For decades both were intimately involved in the parade, until
Barbara’s untimely death in 2016. Today, Ralph Barba, Jr. continues the
family tradition of volunteerism established by his father and stepmother.
ther.
The U.S. and POW/MIA flags mark the parade route, from the current
rent
starting point at Jayson Avenue and on to the original terminus of the parade, near
ear
American Legion Post #103 on 235th Street, near the Douglaston LIRR station.
Dozens of high quality flags and some poles have to be replaced each year, noted
ted
Vietnam veteran and volunteer Tom Dinegar: “If we use cheaper ones, they don’t last st a
year outside.”
Family traditions abound in the parade. McBride’s bride Nancy is a fixture at events and
Dinegar’s better half Karen is Director of Operations, a position that for months
ths
resembles a full-time job.
For more information or to volunteer, visit www.LNDmemorialday.org
Photos: Courtesy of Little Neck-Douglaston Memorial Day Parade
Parade co-chair Charles McBride takes
a turn handing a flag to a Ral-Bar employee,
as volunteer Tom Dinegar looks on.
Oratorio Society of Queens
ANNUAL SPRING CONCERT
Sunday, May 20, 2018 at 4 pm
featuring the music of Leonard Bernstein—
Chichester Psalms, musical selections from West Side Story,
“Make Our Garden Grow” from Candide
OSQ will celebrate Leonard Bernstein’s 100th birthday
by presenting Chichester Psalms.
You will be transported with his stunningly beautiful, melodic and
joyously rhythmic masterpiece—a musical depiction of the
composer’s hope for brotherhood and peace.
Selections from the best of America’s musical heritage are also featured—
reflecting the wide range of music that is the American Choral Experience.
DAVID CLOSE, Artistic Director & Conductor
JERRY KOROBOW
guest artist
Orchestral Arts Ensemble Of Queens
QUEENSBOROUGH PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
Queensborough Community College
222-05 56th Avenue, Bayside, NY
TICKETS: $35;
$30 seniors (62+) and students with ID;
$10 children (12 and under).
Day of the performance tickets: $40.
Order tickets: www.QueensOratorio.org
or 718.279.3006
OSQ concerts are made possible, in part, by public funds from the NYC Department of Cultural
Affairs, Mayor Bill de Blasio and the Queens Delegation of the NYC Council, with additional funding
from Queens Borough President Melinda Katz, NYC Council Member Barry Grodenchik and NYC
Council Member Paul Vallone. Corporation and foundation support include AmazonSmile
Foundation, The Billy Rose Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, Chubb & Son, Halliday
Financial, Meltzer Accounting, and The William C. and Joyce C. O’Neil Charitable Trust.
@QueensOratorio
/www.LNDmemorialday.org
/www.QueensOratorio.org
