54th Annual Flores-Gambino Memorial Day Party

For 54 straight years, the Flores-Gambino family, long-time Penrose neighborhood residents, has thrown a large and festive old-school Memorial Day picnic celebration. Scores of people - friends, family, neighbors - attend and bring delicious potluck.

There are numerous musicians in the family and their circle, and there are sets of many kinds of music performed, from punk to swing, country, old-time rock and roll, jazz, folk-tinged, and more. This year one of the bands had Skeeter Thompson and Pete Stahl sitting in, former members of Scream, the legendary DC hardcore punk band.

Plus, there is every kind of homemade pie, chile, potato, three bean, and macaroni salads, BBQ, vegan dishes, salsas, cakes, cookies, jello molds, crab soup, etc., under the sun.

Thank again to Maria Flores, Maria 'Pete' Durgan, Joe Flores, and their whole clan, whose origins in Arlington began in the 1920's.
Y'all throw a great party.

Photography by Lloyd Wolf.