August Songwriter Sanctuary is hitting the road to Ramona! (With your guide Cathryn Beeks)

We're excited to share that Songwriter Sanctuary is hosting our first ever offsite showcase this month!

Our venue partners at Normal Heights United typically reduce their August programming to give their staff a well-deserved break. Rather than cancel our monthly showcase, we called up our friends at Listen Local Radio and asked if they'd like to help us put together a Ramona roadshow! 

First step was finding a progressive, affirming venue. Enter St. Mary's in the Valley, a beautiful (air conditioned!) Episcopal church which has generously offered its space to us so that we can continue our important tradition of passing along all pre-sale and day-of donations to our artists. 

Chloe Lou (duo), Haywire (duo), and Nate Donnis will be our featured artists, while Pre-show Pantry Jam busking in the welcome/concession area will be provided by Cathryn Beeks w/ Laura Burdette at 6pm til doors at 6:30pm. We invite guests to arrive a little early with donations of unopened/unexpired pantry items and/or gently used clothing to help under-resourced Ramona neighbors!

Since we'll be honoring Season Passes and are encouraging our regular attendees to make the short drive out to Ramona, we thought it'd be fun to ask Cathryn (a Ramona resident since 2024) to give us the intel on this charming town just up the road from the hustle and bustle of San Diego. Whether you plan to make a day, night or weekend out of your trip, allow Cathryn to be your guide:

August 28 Songwriter Sanctuary - INFO/RSVP

Listen Local Radio's Cathryn Beeks

Cathryn Beeks' Guide to Ramona

Cafe/Coffee Shop: Ramona Cafe is THE BEST. The owner Dalia started there as a waitress in the 90s; she’s amazing, and so is the food

Cinnamon roll at Ramona Cafe

Thrift Store: Ramona Food and Clothes Closet is my go to thrift store. They have red light sales, ½ off days and so many treasures!! Plus they feed the folks who need it!

Ramona Food & Clothes Closet

Unique Activities: The Art Center Ramona has so much going on, for adults and kids, including the Spoken Word Salon I host the last Sunday of every month. Then we do a quarterly listening room series called Gallery Sessions, next one is on Oct. 18th featuring Lisa Sanders and Calamity. Then there is a free art workshop the 2nd Saturday of every month. The gallery is full of amazing work by our regional artists and all the folks involved with the Art Center and 2Create Gallery are THE BEST. 

Bug Guts perform at Ramona Art Center

Nightlife/Afterhours: Ha! Ramona shuts down at 9pm. We are a sleepy town. I mean, I GUESS if you’re up for it The Turkey Inn and Molly Malones keep standard bar hours. 

Gift shop: We have a lot of great ones, Rustic Interiors is the one I’m most familiar with. But truly? I thrift for gifts! Besides Ramona Food and Clothes Closet we have Goodwill and Archie’s Pantry. 

Grab a keepsake at Ramona Rustic Interiors

Bed & Breakfast / Lodging: The Dell is THE BEST AirBnB in town. I’ve also enjoyed Lavender and Olive, West Wynd, and Riviera Oaks Resort. We DO have a motel but I have not heard great reviews about it - wince.

Scenic sunset views from the deck at The Dell Ramona

Hike/Nature Exploration? Too numerous to list! So many great places to hike to… waterfalls, scenic views, rocks as thin as potato chips! 

Anything else? Ramona has the most boutique wineries and farm stands per capita than any other small town (according to me, not sure about actual accuracy). You can spend an entire day visiting them all, each has it’s own special magic to offer. 

Thanks to Cathryn for sharing this great guide to Ramona. We hope you'll pencil Songwriter Sanctuary in for a short roadtrip  on August 28, and if you have time to go shopping, sipping or hiking through the countryside, be sure to let us know what you find!

Milagro Winery