West Seattle Summer Fest is almost here – it starts 10 am tomorrow (Friday), and once again, we need to remind you that the Junction streets close TONIGHT at 6 (details, including bus reroutes, are here – and “Summer Fest Eve”/Art Walk info for tonight is here). We still have lots to share in advance. Some quick points this afternoon:

COMMUNITY TENT: One of the schedules you might not have seen yet is for the neighbors you’ll meet at the Summer Fest Community Tent, just west of the Information Booth at California/Alaska (where you’ll find us again this year). So many of the people you’ll meet at the Community Tent are busy all year doing good work, almost always on a volunteer basis, to make West Seattle an awesome place, so go say hi, meet them, thank them, ask questions … The lineup, coordinated by the fine folks at Furry Faces Foundation, is toward the end of this page. (P.S. During Furry Faces’ official time in the tent, they’ll be offering pet-ID tags, among other things.)

WSCO’S ‘INSTRUMENT PETTING ZOO’: West Seattle Community Orchestras will be at the Community Tent (see the schedule) with an “instrument petting zoo” so that young prospective musicians can get a firsthand look.

FAMILY REST STOP AT CITY MOUSE: At 4218 SW Alaska (just east of California), City Mouse Studio and Store is again open during Summer Fest with “a place to feed, change, and escape the heat,” according to proprietor Donna Ryan.

DONATE DIAPERS AT HOMESTREET BANK AND ITS BOOTH: Melodie from HomeStreet Bank (WSB sponsor) has a Summer Fest update:

All weekend long we will be accepting diaper donations for WestSide Baby’s upcoming Stuff the Bus Event (7/20). HomeStreet Bank will accept donations at our booth in vendor row and also at the Branch during normal business hours. We will also be helping folks keep cool by giving out free Otter Pops in front of the branch (located at the corner of Alaska and 41st), while supplies last.

HomeStreet’s booth in the heart of the festival grounds is #148.

‘CYCLELUNG’ AT AAA BOOTH: From AAA-West Seattle (WSB sponsor) – they’ll be at Summer Fest too:

People can stop by our booth (#) to learn more about all of AAA’s great services and enter to win a prize. You can also spin our prize wheel and receive a giveaway. Plus, on Saturday, AAA will host the CycleLung to promote the ALA Bike Around the Sound presented by AAA. The CycleLung is interactive art where a person can pedal a stationary bike to get lungs (a series of light bulbs) to light up. The piece of art is made up of bicycle parts. We look forward to seeing everyone at Summer Fest.

Those are just a few updates – you can browse/search the vendors list, review the vendors map (zoom in to see each booth number), the music schedule, and more, on the official Summer Fest website. For the seventh year, we’ll be in the Information Booth (at walk-all-ways, California/Alaska), with volunteers from the West Seattle Chamber, Kiwanis Club, and Rotary Club, ready to answer questions and say hi. We’ll also have Summer Fest updates, photos, videos, and general info here on the site “live” all three days (plus WSB’s social-media channels – see the links atop the right sidebar). See you at Summer Fest!