‘Reimagined’ event to return
GILROY >> After being canceled last year amid COVID-19 concerns and restrictions, the Gilroy Garlic Festival will return this summer in “reimagined” fashion.
On April 28, the Gilroy Garlic Festival Association announced that this year’s event will occur over two weekends — July 23-25 and July 30-Aug. 1.
“We have all been confronted with so many changes due to COVID-19. There is a great community desire to see the festival come back,” said Tom Cline, association president, in a statement. “Together, we can work to reimagine a Gilroy Garlic Festival that will promote and honor everything that makes Gilroy truly the Garlic Capital of the World.”
Cline went on to say that the festival “seeks to be more than one signature event.”
Highlights, as announced by the association, include:
• A new-look, drivethru Gourmet Alley to take place at Gilroy Presbyterian Church. (A menu and drive-thru times will be announced soon).
• A farm-to-table dinner at Fortino’s Winery on July24.
• A golf tournament, set for July 30, at Gilroy Golf Course. (Details will be announced in May).
The Gilroy Garlic Festival Association said it is working with the Santa Clara County Health Department to obtain approval for the Gourmet Alley DriveThrough experience.
It has been a difficult couple of years for the festival, normally staged at Christmas Hill Park. Organizers had hoped to have the event in 2020 as a symbol of civic unity after a mass shooting at the 2019 festival. But the coronavirus crisis halted the plans.
The shooting occurred July 28, 2019, as the 41st annual event — one of the nation’s most famous food festivals — was wrapping up its three-day run. A 19-yearold gunman opened fire on the crowd, killing three and wounding 17. He later died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, authorities said.
Besides drawing food lovers from around the country, the festival serves as Gilroy’s top fund-raiser for the year, with volunteers staffing the event to earn money for their clubs, schools and other nonprofit groups.
Since 1979, the festival has raised more than $12 million for local nonprofits and schools.
“We will continue to work to connect our community with various smaller events, educational activities, and giving opportunities throughout the year,” Cline said. “Our historic mission to strengthen the bonds within our community is an ongoing commitment.”