Weather or not
Oppressive heat doesn’t keep people away from Jazz & Rib Fest
Armed with a batterypowered fan on her lap and another around her neck, Karen Hunt, 54, of Groveport, bopped to the music in her red lawn chair.
Most other visitors to the 2019 Jazz & Rib Fest congregated in the shade to escape the heat, but not Hunt. She sat dead-center in front of the Genoa Park stage.
“I want to see the performers’ faces,” Hunt said. “It shows a tone of respect for • City pools offer free admission this weekend | B3
• For a slideshow of the Jazz & Rib Fest, visit Dispatch. com/photos
After Michele Lowe toured the Huckleberry House in early June, she knew a partnership between the youth crisis shelter and the Westland Area Library would be a “natural fit.”
“They’re very prepared to meet teens right where they are,” said Lowe, the library’s assistant director. “I was impressed, not just with the facility, but also with how the programs extended in
them, shows them I appreciate their music.”
Running along the Scioto Mile Downtown, the annual Jazz & Rib Fest pairs freshcooked barbecue ribs with smooth, live jazz. Despite an excessive heat warning in effect until 8 p.m. Saturday, festival attendees and barbecue pitmasters are not deterred.
Hunt, a registered nurse at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, knows the danger of being out in the heat for too long. But still, she plans on attending all three days of the festival, which runs through Sunday. Admission to the festival is free.
“I plan on drinking a bottle of water every 30 minutes to an hour,” she said. “But I wouldn’t miss this. I take off work for this.”
Heat indexes will push into the triple digits this weekend, said Jeff Sites, meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Wilmington. The National Weather Service recorded a high of 92 degrees Friday and the heat index reached 102 degrees.
On Saturday, the high is forecast to be 97 degrees and the heat index is expected to hit 109 degrees. It will only cool off slightly Sunday, with a forecast high of 92 and a heat index topping out at 102 degrees.
But heat is nothing new for the festival, which always takes place this time of year, said Brian Hoyt, a spokesman for Columbus Recreation and Parks.
“We always anticipate that it’s going to be hot,” Hoyt said. “We have the fountains at Bicentennial Park and giant misters.”
Hoyt said the heat hasn’t operationally affected the festival, which runs from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Sunday. Festival