At the peak of summer, it’s not just the temperature that’s rising in Valparaiso. Many residents gathered at Central Park Plaza for Valparaiso Events 2024 Summer Concert Series, as they got a front row seat to see their performers bring the heat.
Katie Abel, executive director of Valparaiso Events, shares what this annual tradition means for the people in their city.
“Our summer concert series is all about promoting togetherness in the community,” Abel said. “This is right on the heels of our summer outdoor movies. We love to see friends and families from the area gather to enjoy some great music. We're very proud to provide this series to the community for free because we want to encourage people to stop by and have fun.”
Today’s lineup was filled with astonishing musicians. Ally Christian, a Chesterton High School alum, opened the evening playing with her father and supplied hand-drawn stickers for the attendees. They led the hometown band Small Town to take the stage.
“We always want to support our local artists and bands,” Abel said. “We try to have as many of the bands from the Region. Small Town is definitely one of the most loved in the area.”
Doug Clapp, band leader and main vocalist for Small Town, notes that the band formed as a tribute to the great John Mellencamp.
“We grew up listening to John Mellencamp and started talking about how much we love his music at a bar one night. The idea of the band just evolved from there so it was kind of on a whim about five years ago.”
Small Town was originally formed in 2019. Clapp applauds how the Valparaiso community has always been supportive as a hometown crowd.
“We’ve played at the Popcorn Fest a few times now,” Clapp said. “This is our second time here at the Summer Fest. With us all being local, this is by far the biggest show for us. Seeing people putting their chairs out at noon, it’s an awesome sight to see.”
On top of performing in Valparaiso, Small Town has traveled to several Indiana cities. They’ve also made trips to states such as Michigan, Wisconsin, and Illinois.
After a successful opening night for the summer concert series, Abel is looking forward to the upcoming acts on the schedule as well.
“We’re hosting seven concerts over the next several weeks every Thursday,” Abel said. “The first Thursday in September will be our Popcorn Festival kickoff concert and we’ll be having concerts every week until then.”
Ultimately, the summer concert series wouldn’t be possible without sponsors. Abel recognizes each organization for their support in this event.
“We wouldn’t be able to put our summer concert series together without the support of our sponsors,” Abel said. “It’s an awesome feeling to have such generous businesses in our area that find value in our community gatherings and are willing to sponsor them.”
Valparaiso Events is appreciative to have so many helping hands as sponsors for this event, especially Everwise Credit Union as the platinum sponsor.
Gold sponsors consist of Avalon Springs Health Campus, Allegius Credit Union and NIPSCO.
Silver sponsors include Glacial Sands OMS, Maar Financial Group of Thrivent, Shelter Insurance - Erin Valdivia, and Surf Internet.
Bronze sponsors include AM Stabilizers, Central Midwest Carpenters, David Taylor Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, Northern Indiana Federal Credit Union, Northwestern Mutual Doug Mogck, Terry’s Discount Windows & More LLC, Trailyard Valpo and Valpo Velvet Ice Cream.
For more information on Valparaiso Events, you can visit their website.
