Concerts in the Park drew dancing crowds in August

By Elizabeth Shepherd • August 30, 2022 1:30 am
Pete Welch Photo George Stevens, of The Rumba Kings, stepped into the swirling crowds of dancers at Ober Park in the last installment of the Concerts in the Park on Aug. 25.
Pete Welch Photo George Stevens, of The Rumba Kings, stepped into the swirling crowds of dancers at Ober Park in the last installment of the Concerts in the Park on Aug. 25.

Throughout August, islanders flocked to weekly concerts in the middle of Vashon — a chance to gather with friends and neighbors at Ober Park, share a picnic, chase the kids, or dance barefoot in the grass to the music of accomplished and beloved bands.

The free concerts rolled out weekly, as part of Vashon Park District’s annual Concerts in the Park series, which once again this year was curated by Vashon Events to include both noted regional bands as well as those filled with hometown heroes.

The series started on Thursday, Aug. 4, with the rollicking county band, Jenny Don’t and the Spurs, followed by the Canadian group, The Paperboys, on Aug. 11.

The following week brought a twofer: on Thursday, Aug. 18, Portage Fill — a big band formed in the early 1970s on Vashon and still going strong — delighted the crowd with an evening of jazz-era, swing and show tunes from the Great American Songbook.

The next night, Friday, Aug. 19, a crowd of approximately 500 people showed up to enjoy another group — Troll’s Cottage, a reggae band known for getting ecstatic crowds on Vashon and beyond up on their feet with catchy, soul-rooted message music.

The concert series concluded at 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 25 with The Rumba Kings, a rising Northwest band known for their passionate, guitar-driven presentation of Mediterranean music.

This year, a new feature was added to the concerts by Vashon Events — a “New Voices” opening act featuring up-and-coming island musicians as opening acts.

For Vashon Events and Park District personnel, the shows were a lot of work — including loading sound equipment in and out each week.

But Allison Shirk, of Vashon Events, said the smiling faces and dancing feet at the shows made it all worthwhile.

“The Concerts in the Park series this year was epic — one of our best lineups ever,” Shirk said. “The community came out for the shows in big numbers and made the summer feel vibrant.

Shirk also called the opening acts in the “New Voices” series “a wonderful addition” that added even more local flair to the series.

Expressing gratitude to Vashon Park District, Shirk said Vashon Events was already looking forward to working on the series again in the summer of 2023.

“Sometimes the best ideas come from creative solutions to problems,” she said. “This year we had some complaints about kids rolling down [Ober Park’s] berms into elderly people, so the Vashon Park District staff created a special ‘kids only’ area for rolling. It was a fun addition to the concerts that everyone seemed to get a kick out of. We’ll keep brainstorming ideas every year to make these family-fun concerts even more special.”