Wednesday, 21 September, was the Opening Session at the Oracle Community Center. Registration for attendees began in the morning. Featured speakers for the event received a special gift bag from OWN Oracle, one of the many event sponsors in Oracle.

That was followed by a special welcome and poetry reading by our friend and mentor David Levy. Unfortunately, he was unable to attend in person, but he did want to be here via Zoom. You can view a replay of the YouTube livestream and a continuation.

Following lunch, Scott Roberts, President of Explore Scientific, officially welcomed everyone to the beginning of this exciting week of events in Oracle, Arizona. He talked about the community support for the event and how it grew beyond his original expectations. He then introduced Mike Weasner, Dark Sky Advocate, amateur astronomer, and Oracle resident. Mike talked about moving to Oracle in 2009, getting Oracle State Park designated as an IDA International Dark Sky Park in 2014, ways the community of Oracle cherishes its Dark Sky Heritage, and his attire, patterned after that worn by William Herschel, a famous astronomer in the 1700s. You can view a replay of the afternoon YouTube livestream

Scott then introduced Vince Micallef, Manager of Oracle State Park. Vince spoke about the Park and how excited he was to have this special event here.

Next, was Deborah Gaines, President of the Friends of Oracle State Park. She spoke about the history of Oracle State Park and the mission of the Friends group.

Lastly, Alicia Bristow, President of OWN Oracle, the organization that supports local business owners. She spoke about how the local business owners have endorsed this event and would be supporting it. She then invited everyone to attend a special reception at her home in Oracle. There was music, food, drink, conversations, and enjoyment of the awesome views from her beautiful home.

During the reception the entertainment continued with a severe Monsoon thunderstorm. Over 1.5" rain was received in 45 minutes. Mike Weasner, local trained weather spotter for the National Weather Service, reported the rainfall to the Tucson NWS office. Five minutes later all the cell phones of local residents started blaring a Flash Flood Warning for Oracle emergency alert!

So ended the fun and exciting Opening Session in Oracle!

Photos by Mike Weasner

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