MARYSVILLE — The Marysville Alfy’s Pizza has been so accommodating in hosting the Marysville-Pilchuck High School Life Skills Program’s monthly open mic pizza parties that M-PHS Life Skills teacher Jim Strickland decided that he wanted to offer an evening of participatory musical entertainment for everyone there.

As such, Strickland is inviting the entire community to the first-ever Marysville acoustic “Strawberry Jam” and open mic on Thursday, Aug. 22, from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Alfy’s.

“I enjoy playing the guitar myself, and I look at music as a way for us to share with each other and learn from each other,” Strickland said.

Strickland praised Kayla Jamieson, manager of the Marysville Alfy’s, for being willing to host another community event for him, and credited Deric Dobesh and Ryan Laffin, co-owners of Bigfoot Music in Smokey Point, with helping him spread the word about this event to fellow local musicians.

“I love the arts for allowing us to express who we are and what’s important to us,” said Strickland, who noted that Marysville Arts Coalition President Beckye Randall has also been supportive of the “Strawberry Jam.” “Music gets a response out of people. If an event is music-related, people will think it’s worth their time.”

Whether the “Strawberry Jam” becomes a regular event will depend on the turnout. Strickland hopes to see plenty of people there, whether they’re bringing musical instruments to share songs, or they’re just hanging out to listen to other performers.

“The idea is to give people an outlet for their musical talents, and to help build the arts community in Marysville,” Strickland said of the event, which will be free of charge to both musicians and audience members. “Alfy’s Pizza is one of the few places in town that has the space for this, so I’m just happy that they’re such a community-minded organization.”

Call Strickland at 425-870-1631 for more information.