The 2024 “Summer of Fun” schedule won’t be available until the beginning of May, but on Tuesday the Rogersville Parks Board received a sneak preview of what’s new, and what’s coming back to the City Park this year.
Last year parks director Matthew Elkins and parks program coordinator Matthew Smiley launched the inaugural “Summer of Fun” with different special events every weekend on Friday, Saturday, or sometimes both — as well as events sprinkled in on weekdays as well.
The public response to the 2023 Summer of Fun was so positive that they wanted to bring it back bigger and better in 2024.
Some of the returning favorite events include whiffle ball and disk golf tournaments; the Fourth of July three-on-three basketball tournament; fitness classes; painting in the park; “Aqua-fit” exercise classes at the pool; and a golf clinic at McDonald Hills Gold Course.
New on the agenda for the Summer of Fun will be a home run derby for adults and high school age youths, replacing the Cornhole tournament which Smiley described as “kind of a bust”.
“We’re trying to replace it with something new, so the home run derby is something we’re pumped for,” Smiley told the board.
Another new event in 2024 is a Rogersville City Park Pickleball League, with details to be announced later.
“We’re still trying to decide if we want to let teams signup and play in it, or if we want to make it more social, and we let individuals sign up and we match them up each night, to get new players involved,” Elkins said.
Movies, karaoke & concerts
Last year they had one highly successfully “Movie in the Park” event. Elkins said it was such a hit they’re going to try to do two separate Movie in the Park events in 2024.
Similarly in 2023 there was one karaoke night at the park which Smiley described as a “pretty big hit”. In 2024 they’re hoping to have at least two karaoke nights.
Also new in 2024 will be “Sensory Day” to be held on a Saturday at Rogersville City School with activities tailored toward the special needs community. The event would involve food trucks and vendors outside, and games and attractions inside that will cater to people who need to avoid loud noise and large crowds.
Smiley said he was approached by a staff member at the Hawkins County Health Department who works with special needs individuals who would benefit from this type of program.
“The special needs community is a demographic that we haven’t really touched,” Smiley said. “We’ve done stuff for the youth, the adults, senior citizens — but the special needs community is one that we wanted to branch out into, but we didn’t know what to do. So, with this lady from the Health Department reaching out, this is our way of branching out into that community.”
Also new for 2024 will be semi-regular music in the park concert series. The goal is to hosts concerts most weekends, except when it would coincides with another festival or event being held downtown.
So far there are two concerts scheduled, and additional concerts will be added pending the availability of artists who fall within the Parks Department’s cost limitations.
New for kids
In 2023 the swimming pool hosted bi-weekly Friday night moonlight swims, but Elkins said they will try to make that a weekly event in 2024.
“That just seems to be a very popular activity,” Elkins said
Smiley told the board that Summer of Fun will start a week earlier this year with a “Touch a Truck” event for children.
“We’ll have all sorts of first responders,” Smiley said. “I talked with (Public Safety Director) Travis (Fields) about bringing a police car out there, and a fire truck. I talked to Brett Sivert from Quest Enterprises, and he’s got a lot vehicles and big equipment that he’d like to bring.”
Alderman Brock Gladson who works for the Tennessee Valley Authority is another resource to bring large equipment to exhibit, Smiley noted.
“Kids can see a lot of these vehicles and equipment up close … and sit inside a firetruck and see what the inside looks like,” Smiley said. “I think that would be cool for kids to come out for a couple of hours and see some cool equipment and vehicles.”
Smiley said he is still seeking sponsorship for various events. Any businesses, organizations or individuals interested in sponsoring a Summer of Fun event can call Smiley at (423) 272-2545 or email matts@rogersvilletn.gov
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