By MATT PIKE
St. Joseph Post
A concert series that has filled downtown with music for over a decade is returning this weekend.
Several area churches came together in 2013 to form the Imagine 11 concert series, helping fill Sundays at Coleman Hawkins Park with a variety of music.
Director Roger Lenander says when the event was originally planned, he thought it would just be once or twice a month, but it became much more
"Turned out to be 11 weeks, from the first Sunday in June to the second Sunday in August, so that's where the 11 comes out," Lenander tells KFEQ Hotline host Barry Birr.
Lenander says the theme of Imagine centers around imagining being the community St. Joseph wants to be
"That is people who are generous, who are caring, and are supportive of one another and really celebrate that spirit in the community," Lenander explains.
When the concert series began, it was difficult to find enough bands to fill the 11 weeks, but Lenander says in recent years, that hasn't been a problem.
"Every year some get excluded because we have so many within the region," Lenander says. "We draw from throughout the Kansas City region and northwest region, but also this year we ventured into Kansas and have a Topeka favorite coming in."
Lenander says the concerts draw several people downtown during the series
"We always get about 300 to 400 out there but we've swelled up to 1,000+ at times for groups in years past," Lenander points out. "A group that played was Liverpool, a Beatles tribute group, and one year they drew 1,200 out there."
The concerts are held rain or shine every Sunday from 6 to 8pm between June 2nd and August 11th. The first band featured this coming Sunday will be Revelation: A tribute to Journey.
If a concert is moved inside, it will be held at the First Lutheran Church downtown.
You can follow Matt on X @KfeqMatt and St. Joseph Post @StJosephPost.