Gilchrist Foundation Supports Saturday in the Park
No matter if you’re in New York, Chicago, Texas or California, music festivals are the highlight of summer. But Siouxlanders don’t have to go nearly that far to experience new and legendary bands performing outdoors underneath the wide, open Iowa sky. Since 1991, the Saturday in the Park outdoor music festival has brought free, live music to Sioux City. It is held annually on the Saturday closest to the Fourth of July in Sioux City’s Grandview Park Municipal Bandshell, attracting about 25,000 people from across the Midwest each year. In 2018, the Gilchrist Foundation awarded the festival $50,000 in special project funds to help cover the costs to bring in the musical acts.
2019 Musical Lineup
Over the years Saturday in the Park has featured some truly legendary names including Aretha Franklin, Bonnie Raitt, Melissa Etheridge, BB King and Santana. But it also brings up-and-coming performers to the stage, usually right when they’re making it big, like Jason Isbell, Kacey Musgraves, Avett Brothers and Wilco. For 2019, presenters have lined up a mix of both.
On July 6, 2019, the main stage will feature hip hop artist Flo Rida and rock-and-rollers George Thorogood and the Destroyers. Flo Rida has three number one hits and 11 top 10 hits. George Thorogood and the Destroyers have been playing rockin’ live shows since the mid-1970s. The main bandshell stage will also showcase the talents of Liz Phair, Con Brio, the Michigan Rattler, Ben Grillet and the Black Bloods and Premium Draft.
Abe Stage Lineup
Matisyahu will headline the Abe Stage, the festivals stage that showcases national, regional and local alternative bands. The day’s lineup also includes Snow tha product, Arson City, Artificial Stars, Brady Raps and Psychedelic Sidekick, Gallivant, and Winter Wayfarer.
Family-Friendly and Free
The event is free and open to all ages. Aside from the great musical talent, the day features several food vendors and a play area for kids. The festival also gives local and regional artists a platform to sell their products. Arts Alley is filled with artist booths that sell jewelry, clothing, woodwork, wall art and more. The evening is capped off by a colorful firework display that can be seen across Sioux City’s Northside.
Keeping this event free wouldn’t be possible without sponsors and donors like the Gilchrist Foundation. Jocelyn Gilchrist, the founder of the Gilchrist Foundation, was interested in the arts from an early age. She loved the symphony, theater and Chicago Art Institute. She began to support those interests with the wealth accumulated by her family through the Gilchrist Foundation, which continues to support that mission today.