By Mary Mergenthal and Scott Carlson
St. Anthony Park Lutheran Church is hosting outdoor music this summer organized and hosted by SAP residents Paul and Kim Durkee.
Musicians play on a stage on the side lawn of SAPLC. Luther Place will be partially blocked off from Como Avenue to the Zvago housing co-op driveway, allowing seating on the street and the large Luther Seminary lawn.
SAPLC offers use of indoor bathrooms and electricity to host these concerts.
All concerts start at 6 p.m. and finish by 8 p.m. Here is the lineup for the summer concerts:
- June 2, Sarah Morris & the Sometimes Guys
- June 11, Swingin’ on a Star
- July 24, The Jimmys
- Aug. 11, Scottie Miller Band
- Aug. 26, Leslie Vincent Band
- Sept. 10, Dan Israel Band
- Oct. 9, JW Jones
Due to weather concerns this late in the season, this concert will be held at the Blues Saloon, 1638 Rice St.
This season of Front Lawn concerts is the seventh year the Durkees have organized and hosted these music events.
Front Lawn concerts, which have been held since October 2020, have become a way for the neighbors of Grantham Street and the wider local community to connect through music. The concept arose from the isolation of the pandemic, when music could no longer be played and enjoyed safely indoors.
The Durkees came upon a unique solution. “We knew of some bands and musicians and we said, ‘Hey, we can do this in our front yard,’” Paul said in a 2024 Bugle story.
After that, they hosted four times in the fall of 2020 and then eight in the summer of 2021.
Now the front lawn concerts have become a summer staple in SAP with avid community support. In six years of summer shows, the Front Lawn concerts have attracted 55 bands and more than 250 musicians, drawing an estimated combined attendance of more than 16,000 people, said Paul Durkee.
To date, the concerts have raised more than $136,000 for bands.
A Bugle story in 2024 noted, “Despite being compensated through tips, musicians usually have received no less than $1,100, with some earning up to $4,600.”
For further information on this summer’s Front Lawn concerts, please contact Paul or Kim Durkee at 612-889-0748.
Mary Mergenthal is a former editor of the Bugle; Scott Carlson is current managing editor of the Bugle. This story also contains material from a 2024 Bugle story.
