The Rock For Veterans Day outdoor music festival will be Friday, November 11, 2022 at Irvine Regional Park in Orange, CA . The event is free and open to the public.
The special guest of the day will be Medal of Honor recipient David Bellavia.
The music festival will have not one but two concerts that honor those who currently serve and have served. Angel Force Band and The Side Deal will feature music from Crosby, Stills & Nash, Sugar Ray, The Doors, The Who, Bob Dylan and more.
This family-friendly event will also include a bounce house, obstacle course, food trucks and beer and wine from Golden Road Brewery.
Rock For Veterans Day at Irvine Park
OC Gov Rock For Veterans Day Website
Where: Irvine Regional Park
Address: 1 Irvine Park Road Orange, CA 92869
Dates: Friday, November 11, 2022
Time: 12:00 PM – 5:00 PM PST
Cost: Free! Open to the public (food and drinks available to purchase)
Hosted By: Don Wagner and AngelForce USA, a nonprofit dedicated to Veteran services and resources
The park has public restrooms.
What to Bring to a Concert in the Park
- Snacks, drinks, water
- Money for vendors
- Lawn chairs
- Bug spray, hand sanitizer, wet wipes
- Outdoor blankets/pillows
- Entertainment (cards, games, football etc.)
About David Bellavia
David Bellavia enlisted in the United States Army in 1999. After previously serving in Kosovo, he deployed to Iraq in 2004 with Company A, Task Force 2-2, 1st Infantry Division. He was released from duty on August 16, 2005. David now has his own daily radio talk show for WBEN in Buffalo, New York. He continues to serve the military and Veteran communities through a number of philanthropic organizations.
Then-Staff Sergeant David G. Bellavia received the Medal of Honor for his actions on November 10, 2004, while serving as a squad leader in support of Operation Phantom Fury in Fallujah, Iraq. Then-Staff Sergeant Bellavia was clearing a block of houses when his platoon became pinned down. He quickly exchanged an M16 rifle for an M249 Squad Automatic Weapon, entered the house where his squad was trapped, and engaged insurgents, providing cover fire so that he and his fellow soldiers could exit safely.
A Bradley Fighting Vehicle arrived to help suppress the enemy, but it could not fire directly into the house. Then-Staff Sergeant Bellavia re-entered the house, armed with an M16, and assaulted insurgents who were firing rocket-propelled grenades. He proceeded to kill one insurgent and wound another, who then ran to another part of the house.
Then-Staff Sergeant Bellavia was soon engaged by another insurgent rushing down the stairs when the previously wounded insurgent reemerged to engage him as well. Then-Staff Sergeant Bellavia returned fire, killing both attackers. He then took enemy fire from an insurgent who had appeared from a closet across the room.
He pursued him up the stairs and killed him. Soon thereafter, he moved to the roof where he engaged and wounded a fifth insurgent, who fell from the roof of the building. That remarkable day, then-Staff Sergeant Bellavia rescued an entire squad, cleared an insurgent strong point, and saved many members of his platoon from imminent threat.