The Community of Hiawatha Knows How to Throw A Party

It was a fun weekend celebrating all things Hiawatha at the annual "Fun Fest", and it began with a lovely open-air concert at the town's Guthridge Park Friday night featuring my friends Jen Zoller, John Fokken and 8 Seconds.

I don't get to see them perform much--they don't usually play before my bedtime--but I was happy to walk the two blocks from my house to the park on a beautiful night to enjoy this fun, family-friendly event. They play country music for the most part, and they definitely nailed everything from Waylon Jennings to Miranda Lambert, with even some Shania Twain, Journey and Lynyrd Skynyrd thrown in. They closed the night with Grand Funk Railroad's "We're an American Band".

I was excited to hear two of my favorite country "jams" in the form of "Small Town Saturday Night" by Hal Ketchum and "I Feel Lucky" by Mary Chapin-Carpenter.

The best part was watching my friend and co-worker, Jen, interact with the crowd, which was full of my neighbors and their families.  Thanks again to Hiawatha for putting on a great event, and to Jen, John and the rest of the band for an awesome show.

I'll be back next year and I hope to see you there. I hope 8 Seconds will too, unless of course what one audience member told me comes true. They are so good, they should branch out and become a bigger deal.