Bethany Beach Jazz Funeral to bid farewell to summer Sept. 2

With Labor Day less than a month away, residents and visitors to the Quiet Resorts can plan to celebrate with the annual Bethany Beach Jazz Funeral, starting at 5:30 p.m., Monday, Sept. 2, on the Bethany Beach boardwalk.

Kicking off the unofficial end-of-summer weekend events will be a silent auction and celebration at 3 p.m., Friday, Aug. 30, at Bethany Blues, 6 N. Pennsylvania Ave. The owners and staff of Bethany Blues have generously sponsored this fundraising event for more than 18 years. This year’s beneficiary will be the American Red Cross Delmarva Chapter.

To mark the conclusion of the traditional summer resort season, everyone can join a funeral procession from the north end of the boardwalk to the Bethany bandstand, led by official mourners carrying a casket with a decorated mannequin representing Summer of 2024. Accompanying the procession will be Dixieland bands, including the Jazz Funeral Irregulars and the Dixie Cats, usually along with impromptu players on kazoos and other informal musical devices.

The festivities will include brief reflections and recollections of Bethany residents after the procession reaches the bandstand.

This year's assistant chairs are Marilyn Panagopoulos, Carolyn Bacon and Marie Wright. “It's the 39th Bethany Beach Jazz Funeral, and we've always aimed to make it fun," Wright said. “In the Quiet Resorts, we want to honor the dedication and hard work of our visiting summer locals and true local families.”

Anyone interested in volunteering for the Bethany Beach Jazz Funeral or the silent auction at Bethany Blues should email ecprg@comcast.net or call 302-537-1585 to leave a message. Visit jazz-funeral.com for an event overview.