Photo Gallery - Oracle Band at
Laurel Independence Day
Fireworks

Granville Gude Park at Laurel Lakes
Laurel Maryland
Friday, July 5, 2008

Page 1 of 2  (Go to Page 2)

Wow!!! 

That about sums up the feelings we had as a band as we watched the crowd come into the Granville-Gude Park at Laurel Lakes for their 30th annual Independence Day celebration.

The series of photos on the left pretty well depict the magnitude of the event, from just a trickle of folks out on the field as we were setting up, to a vision of people as far as the eye could see by the time the fireworks were ready to be fired off.

We took over 800 photos during the course of the day, and we have selected 60+ of the best ones to display here, plus we have a slideshow option at the bottom of this page with some other photos.  We have so many shots that we've had to devote two full gallery pages to them, to accommodate those that still have dial-up connections and would have to wait forever if we put all 60+ on one page.

We were thrilled to have Veronica's mother & aunt in from the Philippines to hear the concert.In the photo on the right, you'll see Veronica with three very special guests we had in the audience.  First off, we had Veronica's mother and aunt in attendance, who had flown halfway around the world from the Philippines to be with us.  Also in the photo is another dear friend of the band Carol, who just a few months ago had been run down by an out of control car in Mexico and was back with us (along with her husband Tim who was also severely injured), for the first time since the accident.  They drove down all the way from the Philadelphia area to be with us.

The weather had been threatening all morning long, but as the day progressed things looked better and better, and by the time show time rolled around the sun was out and folks were ready for a concert.

Click on any of the photos below for an enlarged view.
The front line of the band on stage at the Laurel Independence Day concert & fireworks celebration It was good to see some of our Oracle Family members out to join us early in the day
This is Kay, who was coordinating the entire volunteer event. Now here's a really cute couple!
Meet Dave, who provided the main PA system we used for the concert. A pleasure to work with Flag raising ceremony at the beginning of the Laurel Independence Day celebration 2008
Meet Mayor Moe of Laurel, without whose dedication the day wouldn't have been possible This lovely young lady, Miss Teen Laurel, sand the national anthem to open the festivities
Our very dear friends Tim & Carol, appearing for the first time at an Oracle performance since they were run down by an out of control car in Mexico Veronica relaxes before the show with friends
The "Oracle Family" consists of over 1000 friends of the band that come out to listen, dance, & sing along with the band. Subscribe to our newsletter today & become a family member! Long distance view of Oracle on stage at Laurel Lakes concert
Mike & Veronne on stage during the early part of the Laurel Independence Day celebration Nikki on fiddle as she looks out on the appreciative crowd
Oracle Band on stage at Laurel Independence Day concert at Laurel Lakes Maryland The field in front of the stage begins to fill with people.
View from stage as the field continues to fill with spectators Veronne, Nikki, & Charlie look out on the audience 
It was during the song Billie Jean that this young man gave a great demonstration on how to do Michael Jackson's moonwalk The audience numbers continue to swell in anticipation of the big fireworks display in Laurel Maryland
The field in front of Oracle Band continues to fill with spectators for the Laurel fireworks display 2008 The LAurel concert was definitely an event that was fun forthe whole family. 
It had been threatening rain all morning, but by concert time the sun was out & it was a perfect day for a concert. Charlie looks out over the crowd at the Laurel Lakes Independence Day fireworks celebration
It was pretty awsome watching the field in front of the concert stage fill with people all afternoon The vendors were doing a brisk business as a carnival atmosphere takes over the day & the crowd continues to increase
More people pour onto the field to listen to the Oracle Band perform prior to the fireworks in Laurel Maryland This is what it looks like from the stage as Oracle performs for the largest crowd we've ever played for
The day heats up & the numbers swell at Laurel Lakes before the fireworks. It was a perfect day for a concert. Here's Charlie taking a break with his family during intermission
The crowd continues to grow and the view from the stage gets more and more awe inspiring.
You've got to love the look on Veronica's face as she surveys the largest crowd Oracle has ever performed for Nikki looks out at the ever swelling crowd at the Oracle Band's performance at Laurel Lakes 2008

Can you believe this? Without a doubt the largest crowd Oracle Band has ever performed for, and at this point we were still almost an hour away from the fireworks! 

Don't quit now.  There are still over 30 photos to go taken during the last hour of the concert, as the field REALLY fills up!

Go to Laurel Independence Day Photo Gallery Page 2 

 Where did all these people come from? OK, we know it was mainly the fireworks that drew the crowd, but we kept them entertained for over four hours and loved every minute of it.

We've put together a little slideshow from the photos that runs from the photo sharing site Flickr.  Feel free to download any photos you like, or head over to Flickr to comment on any of the photos you see.

The slideshow starts in the early afternoon, and we watch from stage as well as out in the audience as the crowd continues to swell throughout the day, until somewhere around 100,000 are within listening distance of the band.

It's a pretty heady feeling!
Other photos from City of Laurel Events:
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