Published On: August 25th, 2019Categories: Uncategorized


Kicking off weekends in the Millennium Harvest House hotel’s creekside beer garden was routine for many Boulderites for decades.

After a hiatus that lasted several years following a transition in hotel management, Friday Afternoon Club at the central Boulder establishment is making a comeback.

Around three dozen people strolled through this week — the fourth installment since the weekly event’s revival — and listened to the three-piece bluegrass band As You Wish while enjoying some of the drinks on special: a mango-vodka mix and a sangria, among others, as well as some local craft brews, of course.

Millennium’s staff hopes to boost the attendance and return the event what it once was, hopefully by drawing back some of the several hundred members of the Boulder High class of 1969 who made the event’s initial resurrection about a month ago when they hosted their 50th reunion party in the mellow outdoor space. Their friends and relatives — and anyone else — are invited to become part of the audience in the weeks ahead, too.

“It was neat to listen to the stories of people who said when they were in high school, they used to sneak out on Fridays and come here,” Kristy Zebel, Millennium’s director of sales, said.

Tamara Nelson was among a group of friends enjoying the picking of the band and was sipping out of a Boulder Beer Co. can as the breeze blew by and cyclists rolling on the path along the creek just behind the stage stopped to have a listen. She said she remembers coming to Millennium on Fridays frequently as a college student in Boulder in the 1980s.

“Bring it back, bring it back,” Nelson said. “It’s a nice ambiance, really easy-peasy. And they have beer!”

Nostalgia wasn’t the only attraction, though. A handful of little ones played and danced on the pavilion while their moms and dads enjoyed a beverage, and others watching were tourists enjoying their stay in a room upstairs, and lured down by the sounds of strings and people having a good time.

John and Kathy Everson were visiting Boulder from Nashville, taking a break from selling ice cream in the Tennessee city, and were impressed with the Millennium’s relaxed Friday Afternoon Club feel.

“It’s always been a fun town,” John Everson said, explaining he stayed a stint in Boulder in 1972. “It took me a while to get back.”

Boulder’s relative lack of insects compared to the humid Volunteer State was especially liked by his companion.

“It’s so nice to be able to sit out here with the wind blowing and no mosquitoes,” Kathy Everson said.

Others yet were there specifically to see one member of As You Wish, Jackson Earles, strum the mandolin.

“He’s absolutely a prodigy,” said Norm Strassner, who has played the upright bass alongside the 16-year-old Earles, whose best talent is actually the fiddle, according to Strassner.

“I hope they do bring this back,” Bunnie Strassner said while the pair’s pooch Lizzie, a fluffy half-terrier, half-poodle, sought affection from strangers. “We need more outdoor music and more places for musicians to play.”

Millennium staff plans to hold the celebration of the gateway to the weekend through the fall, up to University of Colorado Boulder’s homecoming. They also hope to draw folks into the garden for CU Buffs football games on Saturdays for outdoor TV viewing.

If you go

What: Friday Afternoon Club

When: 5 p.m. Fridays

Where: Millennium Harvest House, 1345 28th St, Boulder

Cost: Free (until you order food or drink, $8 tickets)

More info: bouldercoloradousa.com/event/fac-(-friday-afternoon-club-)-is-bac/31085/


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