View from the Stage with DeMasi
I am writing this column on Monday afternoon as the river rises! My heart goes out to all of the people along the Kathryn Rd and elsewhere around town battling to save their homes. Fortunately for us we have plenty of advanced warning to prepare for this flood, we have experience fighting floods as we have been through things like this before and we have a new flood wall protection system. I guess we will find out now how well it works!!
I was standing in front of the Rosebud looking into City Park and thinking about how much preparation we have done over the years as a city to prepare and more importantly survive these types of events. The Band shell in City Park has been restored and can now withstand the flood so once the water recedes, the Concert in the Park series held every summer in City Park will proceed. No longer will we have to find and use an alternate space because of the work that our community has done. The same is true with the Gazebo. That has been protected as well. No longer will we have to worry, assess damage and rebuild. Now we just wait for the water to recede, dry off and carry on.
I know that Chautauqua Park is completely underwater as of this writing but thanks to good planning and foresight the Dacotah Pavilion will fare just fine as well.
And that is why I can look forward to the wonderful programs we have planned once again this year for the Concert in the Park Wed night series as well as the Sunday’s in Pioneer Park event series. I will wait until next months column to talk about the up coming schedule but just know that there is great entertainment planned once again for our community including acts that have performed for us before as well as some new ones you will not want to miss.
Many of you may now know that Diane Sommerfelt has retired from her position at the Valley City Parks and Rec. She was so instrumental in getting the Music in the Park Series going. Fortunately she will still be with us this season and we are all hoping that she will continue to at least be available for consultation and advice going forward. I would personally like to thank her for all of the years of service and commitment that she has given to her job, her community and to Music in the Park. She was the creator and sustainer for over 25 years and I dare to say that with out Diane, there would not have been a Music in the Park Concert Series in our town. So Diane, thank you so much for all that you have done. You are a true blessing to our community.
Many of you may also know that the great singer Peggy Lee has a very close Valley City connection as she got her start singing on KOVC radio right here in Valley City so many years ago. The radio station was originally located in the basement of the Rudolf Hotel. Keep an eye out for the new Peggy Lee mural that is being painted on the north side of the Rudolf Hotel this summer. It is wonderful to see her history being represented here in the town where she got her start in show business and there are plans in the works to expand on that connection to help make Valley City an even more inviting place to visit.
There are so many things to look forward to here in Valley City this summer so even though we have to deal with some rising water at the moment, we are certainly well positioned to handle this crisis and to get ready to enjoy all of the wonderful events planned for our town this summer. Keep those feet nice and dry and until next time, we’ll see you from the stage!