Symphony To Perform Free Concert For Wildfire Victims

SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego Symphony will perform a free concert in Rancho Bernardo next week and a picnic will be held for area residents who were impacted by the wildfires, it was announced Friday.

The concert, themed "Symphony on the Green: A Tribune to Heroes," will begin at noon Nov. 17 at the Rancho Bernardo Community Park, 18448 W. Bernardo Drive, according to Mayor Jerry Sanders.

Residents who were evacuated from Rancho Bernardo, 4S Ranch, Poway and Rancho Penasquitos during the wildfires are invited to attend.

More than 360 homes were destroyed in Rancho Bernardo during the recent Witch Creek fire and hundreds of others were leveled in nearby communities.

Sanders said the event will be a way for Rancho Bernardo and its neighbors to recognize the "heroes of the wildfires and also to help begin the healing process with a celebration of great music and civic pride."

In addition to the San Diego Symphony, which is conducted by Jahja Ling, there will be performances by the San Marcos High School Jazz Ensemble and the San Diego Childrens Choir, according to the mayor's office.

The event is being sponsored by the Rancho Bernardo Town Center Merchants Association, Rancho Bernardo Town Center and Boardwalk Development, an area property management and development firm.

"As corny as it sounds we want to offer a community hug," Boardwalk Development's Ron Bamberger said.