City of Elkhart hosts The Jacksons, Boyz II Men, and more during Celebration Under the Stars

On Saturday, August 29, the City of Elkhart came together for Celebration Under the Stars, providing residents with a star-studded line up of live music with no cost of entry.

Downtown Elkhart was packed as residents socialized under the night sky. The event’s focal point was its live music — major musicians, including The Jacksons and Boyz II Men, took center stage, as row upon row of smiling faces cheered them on.

Local food and beverage vendors lined the streets surrounding the venue, selling delicious barbecue, lemonade, pizza, and other festival fare. Downtown Elkhart felt like one massive party for the evening as the entire city lit up and came to life.

It wasn’t just the residents of Elkhart that enjoyed such a huge festival; the small businesses dotted across the city’s main street benefited, too. Celebration Under the Stars drew a tremendous crowd, and local shops like Stephenson’s, a business that has been in the heart of downtown Elkhart since 1931, benefitted from the increased traffic.

“Our business started in 1931,” Danny Reynolds, Stephenson’s owner, said.  “We’ve seen depressions, recessions, wars, you name it, but I’ve never seen energy like we have right now.”

Elkhart, indeed, has faced difficult times in the past. The 2008 recession hit the city hard. Most businesses struggled, and several had to close their doors. The city responded by renovating the Lerner Theatre and using it as a venue for events like Celebration Under the Stars to help resuscitate the city’s economy.

“I remember being down here on Main Street during 2008 and 2009, during the recession,” Reynolds said. “It was quiet all the time. These guys had this dream to refurbish the Lerner, and we’ve just seen growth and energy ever since. I’ve never been more proud of being downtown.”

The amount of people who attended Celebration Under the Stars was historic for Elkhart. Thousands of people listened to the spectacular performances and enjoyed local food stands. Those thousands of people also walked the streets of downtown Elkhart, checking out all the stores, restaurants, and businesses that have made their home in the city.

“How could you complain about having this many people downtown? It can make it a bit of a challenge to get to our store during the event. But everybody’s walking by, seeing our display windows, and noticing our store. Hopefully we’re planting seeds, and they’ll come back and visit.”

Celebration Under the Stars is a tremendous boom for Elkhart’s local businesses, but the people of Elkhart are given even more joy.

Life can be hard. Both wants and needs can be expensive. A city providing a free event like this one can mean so much for a community. It gives residents an opportunity to spend time with old friends, make new ones, and enjoy quality entertainment that few places in America get the chance to view for free.

“It’s amazing economically, but more than anything, this is bringing people together. I’ve seen nothing but smiles for the last two hours. What I see is a community coming together right now. For a town our size, this is an amazing set,” Reynolds said.

Presented by Elkhart County CVB and Friends of the Lerner, Celebration Under the Stars brought the entire county together in a special way. Few cities host such star-studded performances. Even fewer host them for free. For a smaller city like Elkhart, free live music at this scale is something that the residents clearly didn’t take for granted, as they partied well into the night with the stars glittering above them.

For more information, visit TheLerner.com.