Park Band celebrates the flag
Also, Tuesday@theTech focuses on career support; Mr. Kingston's Car Show wows the crowd
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Appropriately for Flag Day 2023, Highland Park’s Kokomo Park Band (KPB) performed music that celebrated the United States and our flag on June 14. Artistic Director and Conductor Jay Gephart led the band in rousing tunes starting with “American Legion March” and moved on to variations on the national anthem with the “Festival Overture on The Star Spangled Banner.”
Then the band’s brass took over with KPB veterans Keith Whitford, Jeremy Snyder, and Joel Matthews performing “Bugler’s Holiday.” Also featured was frequently featured KBP vocalist Sally Duke singing Irving Berlin’s famous “God Bless America.”
The show featured several Kokomo High School and other local high school musicians participating in the annual “Side by Side” concert, which invites local high school musicians to play “side by side” with the KPB veterans. The students were recognized during the show by KPB announcer Curt Alexander.
Ending the concert were patriotic favorites, George M. Cohan’s “You’re a Grand Old Flag” and finally the original “Star Spangled Banner.” The concert was sponsored by Community First Bank.
On June 21 the Kokomo Park Band concert is titled “Strike Up the Band - Spotlight on Youth” featuring guest Steven W. Pratt, Director of Bands Emeritus, Indiana University - Guest Conductor, and the Youth Multicultural Rhythm Ensemble with Art Reiner instructing. The June 21 concert sponsor is Cone Palace.
All concerts are free and held weather permitting at the stage in Highland Park in Kokomo every Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. through July 26.
Tuesday@TheTech focuses on career support June 27
Ivy Tech Kokomo’s next Tuesday@TheTech will focus on the College’s Ivy+ Career Link programs that provide career development services for Ivy Tech students and alumni.
The open house for prospective students is set for 9-11 a.m. Tuesday, June 27, in the Main Building on the campus at 1815 E. Morgan St. in Kokomo.
“This will be an opportunity to learn about all the career services and support offered at Ivy Tech,’ said Katie Loman, executive director of Ivy+ Career Link for the Ivy Tech Kokomo Service Area. “We have experienced and caring staff members who help with setting career goals, perfecting skills in resume writing and interviewing, finding internships and work-based learning, and placement into jobs with bright futures.”
Career Link also provides a variety of talent connection opportunities and employee training for employers. “The pool of resources we offer connects students, employers, alumni, and communities,” Loman said.
This is one of a series of monthly events aimed at sharing Ivy Tech’s high-tech facilities and broad range of programming in the Kokomo Service Area, which includes Cass, Fulton, Howard, Miami, Pulaski, and Tipton counties.
For more information about how to register for this Tuesday@TheTech, go to ivytech.edu/tuesdays or email Kokomo-enrollment@ivytech.edu. Walk-ins are welcome. For more information on Ivy+ Career Link, contact Loman at kloman@ivytech.edu or 765-252-5495.
Mr. Kingston’s Car Show celebrates automotive history
The Howard County Historical Society’s “Mr. Kingston’s Car Show” event on the grounds of the Seiberling Mansion on June 9-10 showcased the ingenuity and mechanical abilities of the early 20th Century; none more so than that of George Kingston, who along with his friend, Henry Ford, helped America get on the road, and later helping the Allies win World War II.
Volunteers and re-enactors filled the museum grounds during the event as visitors were awed by antique cars, including Haynes and Apperson vehicles made in Kokomo. “Mr. Kingston” and his wife were on-hand to reminisce about their life in Kokomo. The Boy Scouts of America held a Pinewood Derby during the two-day event as well.
According to the historical society, Kingston arrived in Kokomo in 1901 to work at the Ford and Donnelly foundry, but soon after his curiosity about the new automobile industry led to his invention of the Kingston carburetor, which he designed and manufactured for his Detroit pal, Henry Ford, and his new automobile, the Model T.
The Kingston carburetor was used in almost every Model T Ford built, and from that partnership Mr. Kingston co-founded the Byrne and Kingston Manufacturing Company, later becoming Kingston Products, located on Kokomo’s northwest side.
Kingston manufactured many things, some non-automotive, and even some toys as well. At the Seiberling event there were displays of electric toys, cars, and even Kingston roller skates. Kingston also built everything from life rafts to ammunition for the military during WWII.
Kingston purchased the Seiberling from real estate investor Franklin Miller in 1914 and was the longest owner of the property in its history. After Kingston’s death in 1946, the mansion was sold to Indiana University which used it as a satellite campus until the IU Kokomo campus was built in 1966.
Visit www.kokomolantern.com or the Lantern’s Facebook page or group to see more photos from this event.