Commentary by Sue Finkam
I’d like to take this opportunity to recognize those who helped make our first ever Carmel PorchFest a very special event:
• Heather Clark and her team at Ingredients Design gave the event a fun, quirky, earthy identity, and donated countless hours to the event’s promotion and organization.
• Blair Clark and Austin Johnson from Midwest School of Voice recruited, screened and organized all 43 of the awesome musical acts that performed.
• Justin Moffett from Old Town Design Group served as our neighborhood liaison, answering questions and finding porches for us to use. He also led the design and build of our award-winning CarmelFest float.
• Ron Carter of the Carmel City Council and Jeff Worrell of Good Day Carmel lent their years of experience overseeing the Carmel Farmers Market and CarmelFest, respectively, and were helpful in every aspect of our planning.
• Jenny Anderson stepped up to handle all social media promotion for bands, porches and sponsors.
•The Carmel Mayor’s Youth Council, led at different times by Jack Langston and Matt Klineman, provided us with bountiful energy and much needed manpower to promote and staff the event.
•Our “Dream Team” volunteers who signed up to be stage managers, roadies and cheerleaders. You rocked the day.
•Our porch owners threw out their welcome mats onto gorgeous porches for us to use as performance venues. Thanks for trusting us with your pride and joy.
•Our sponsors were our lifeblood and deserve one more mention: Ingredients, Current in Carmel, Old Town Design Group, Alpha Graphics, Graphicon, King Enterprises, Barnes & Thornburg, IU Health North Hospital, Visit Hamilton County, Brian McGuckin Photography and the City of Carmel.
But most importantly, I’d like to thank the community at large. Approximately 4,000 of you came out to see what this crazy thing called Carmel PorchFest was all about. You took time out to enjoy all that our community had to offer on a gorgeous September day. We hope that the sights and sounds you experienced on the undiscovered streets of the Arts & Design District helped strengthen your tie to our community.
