Under warm, sunny skies thousands of locals and Bay Area residents swarmed down to Lincoln Avenue to shop, eat and enjoy family-oriented activities that offered a strong sense of community and friendliness.

Starting early last week, strollers on Lincoln Avenue were filled with anticipation for this year's event as beautiful old fashioned cars zoomed around Willow Glen's main thoroughfare honking their funny-sounding horns to the amusement of children and adults.

The Willow Glen Neighborhood Association, under the leadership of John Gibbs, should be commended for coordinating such a professional event to properly celebrate Willow Glen's 75th anniversary. WGNA's support was a vital factor in the event's success this year.

This year, the event went through somewhat of a rebirth, including its proper identification as "Founders' Day," with the apostrophe after the 's' to indicate remembrance of Willow Glen's many founders. These founders fought to maintain Willow Glen as an independent community for nearly nine years—from 1927 to 1936—before becoming incorporated by the city of San Jose.

The event provided an opportunity to remember the fighting spirit of Willow Glen's founding fathers, orchardists like Henry Coe, Royal Cottle and C.T. Settle, who worked the earth with their bare hands to make their orchards grow, and others who weren't afraid to take on the Southern Pacific Railroad Company, which threatened to move its main line right through the Willows. After challenging the company in court, these men incorporated the town of Willow Glen.

Founders' Day needs to continue for the sake of the community and the hundreds of cultural and historical enthusiasts who prepared for this year's celebration by generously donating their time and efforts to make it a success.

The event must survive despite bureaucratic problems and association woes. For years, Founders' Day has helped Willow Glen maintain its strong sense of community. It falls every year on Sept. 8 and this year provided a welcomed opportunity to gather as a community shortly before the Sept. 11 anniversary. The event was a chance to focus on something positive rather than the despicable murderous acts that left our nation's spirit wounded, but not broken.

Founders' Day gave the community a great way to show its strength and determination to fight violence with a positive outlook on life and a desire to make the world more peaceful and loving.

Sunday was a time for all who love Willow Glen to reclaim their right to celebrate the area's historical and cultural heritage and to remember that Willow Glen is more than million-dollar homes and another shopping attraction. It was time to show that Willow Glen is about caring neighbors, hardworking merchants, talented artists, gifted performers, educated historians, dedicated preservationists and altruistic community leaders.

Much praise is also in order for those like Michael Borbely who is working hard to restore the pillars in the beautiful Palm Haven neighborhood, where many historical homes stand proud today as a witness of the area's past, valiantly defying urban sprawl.

Sheila Sanchez is the editor of the Willow Glen Resident. She can be reached at ssanchez@svcn.com or 408.200.1051.