Melanie Morgan

Aboard the USS Hornet, in Alameda, CA, on Saturday, May 17th, 2008 from 10am to 5 pm (Ship opens at 10AM; music starts at 11AM), the American Red Cross Santa Clara Valley Chapter Operation: Care and Comfort program will host TROOPFEST 2008, a benefit concert and festival to raise funds to send packages to US Troops abroad.

The highlight of TROOPFEST 2008 is the benefit concert with five hours of classic rock music on the hangar deck featuring the Greg Kihn Band, Midlife Vices, Cocktail Monkeys, and Evolution; a tribute to Journey. Guest star Chris Jackson of 98.5 KFOX and grammy winning artist Tony Lindsay will also perform.

TROOPFEST 2008 activities include air craft carrier tours, exhibit and sponsorship tables, and a raffle. TROOPFEST 2008 Raffle Grand prize is a 12-day cruise for two from Holland America Line and other raffle prizes include an original 80's Kramer Pacer American (Strat shape) all stock guitar signed by classic rock artists including Joe Satriani, Greg Kihn, Tom Johnston and Pat Simmons of The Doobie Brothers, Pat Travers, Dave Meniketti of Y&T, and others, donated by Chris Jackson.

Tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for youth (5-17.) A special Military ticket is available for $15 with valid military I.D. All tickets will be $5 more if purchased at the door. The adult ticket is also a raffle ticket, and additional raffle tickets may be purchased for $15 each, or 8 for $100. Tickets may be purchased at Streetlight Records located at 980 South Bascom Avenue in San Jose or by logging onto to the U.S.S. Hornet website at www.uss-hornet.org. Updated event information is available at www.troopfest.org.

For more information on how you may participate in this event, call Julie DeMaria of Operation: Care and Comfort at (408) 373-8635 or via email at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .