June kicks off with festivals, concerts for one hot Maury County summer
The start of a new month is always an exciting time to map out all of the fun things happening around town and throughout the county.
It's especially fun when we roll into the summer months, when school is out and festival season kicks into high gear, when holidays like the 4th of July are rapidly approaching, and it's all about blowing things up and grilling in the backyard.
It's almost a priority when a new month comes around for me to do my best in keeping track of all the activity citizens can experience and participate in the county, mainly because people still to this day, have this wild idea that "there's nothing to do here."
If that were the case, I wouldn't work every week to list weekend events every Friday, nor would I feel the need to write a column that attempts to compile a month's worth of things to do, mostly because it's always a lot, and usually a lot more than what was happening the previous year.
June in Columbia began over the weekend with First Fridays, as well as Rory Feek's first Homestead Festival, a unique take on a typical summer music fest. Not only did we see the likes of Kevin Costner and his band Modern West make their way to southern Middle Tennessee, but it was an opportunity for attendees to learn skills related to sustainable living, which these days is quite a useful tool to have in your toolbox given the state of the world, rising gas prices and supply chain shortages.
This weekend also featured West 7th Co.'s new Summer Show from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, with the downtown gallery partnering with York & Friends to showcase seven of the Nashville gallery's featured artists, as well as a brand new display of photos from West 7th's extensive Orman collection.
If you're an outdoors kind of person, Woodland Park's disc golf course is always a fun way to spend an afternoon, and Columbia Park's and Recreation plans to expand it over the next month or two. Riverwalk Park will also receive upgrades to its basketball courts, along with new lighting.
The Factory at Columbia, 101 N. James M. Campbell Blvd., will also introduce a new music fest June 11, titled Hopefest. The event will feature a free gospel concert, as well as a silent auction, food vendors and the opportunity to shop at The Factory's expanding businesses.
Speaking of live music, Mt. Pleasant will continue to host its popular Music on The Porch series, with Spring Hill also continuing its annual monthly Pickin' in The Park series throughout the summer.
On Saturday, June 25, Foster Party of 8 will be bringing back its free Summerstock concert at Riverwalk Park, along with Buck Sixx and other special guests.
Not to mention, The Mulehouse will continue its weekly run of shows throughout the month, which began this weekend with World Turning: A Fleetwood Mac Tribute on Friday and The Steel Woods on Saturday.
Other upcoming June Mulehouse shows will include Read Southall Band on June 10, Girl Named Tom on June 16 and The Eaglemaniacs on June 17.
Community theater is also an industry that deserves much support from citizens, and this year is a special one. The Maury County Arts Guild is launching its 50th season this summer, which starts with the nonprofit's production of "Chicago," which will debut in July.
The MCAG will also host its KAP Summer Theater Camp next week, which will dive into multiple skills and topics, such as how to nail a good audition, theater etiquette, lighting and sound.
The Building Block School for the Arts, 1309 S. Main St., will also host another of its murder mystery dinners June 10-11.
With so much to see, experience and enjoy, the hardest part is finding the time to do it all, which honestly isn't such a bad thing. The city's tourism website, www.VisitColumbiaTN.com, is a good resource to keep track of it all, where bands are playing and to learn more about the organizations who work to put it all together.
For the start of summer, I'd say there is more than a lot to look forward to, and it's only going to get bigger and better.
Jay Powell is a reporter for The Daily Herald. Contact him at jpowell@c-dh.net or follow him on Twitter @JayPowellCDH.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Herald: June kicking off with festivals, concerts for one hot Maury County summer
