The sounds of summer in Verona

Jul 19, 2012

Photo: The Camp Fire Boys of Kemptville, Jon and Jeff, delighted listeners at McMullen Park in Verona on July 15

There is no better way to relax on a summer Sunday than by kicking back in a lawn chair with a view of the lake nearby and enjoying the sounds of live music. So says Joyce Casement, who founded and organizes the VCA 's Music in the Park, a free summer concert series at McMullen beach in Verona. The concert series is now in its fourth year and continues to draw performers and a sizable audience from far and wide. This past Sunday on July 15, it was the Camp Fire Boys, an acoustic duo from Kemptville made up of two talented singers and guitar players, Jon and Jeff, who took to the outdoor stage under the McMullen park pavilion. Their campy antics and mastery of countless classic camp fire sing-along tunes had listeners tapping their toes in time. They covered numerous classics like Neil Diamond’s Sweet Caroline, numerous Beatles tunes and favorites by Cat Stevens, James Taylor, John Denver. These songs with their easy-going lyrics and melodies have come to define the classic sounds of summer.

McMullen Park is the perfect setting for the series with its numerous shade trees, the beach right there and the very well maintained grounds thanks to the Portland and District Recreation committee. Anyone who missed the Camp Fire Boys, have no fear. They will be back in Verona performing on Friday August 10 at the Verona Cattail Festival, which runs from August 10-12.

Music lovers will also not want to miss the final free concert in the series, the pop/rock group from Harrowsmith, “Bellfonix”. They will perform at the park on August 19 from 2-4pm. In case of heavy rain the concert will take place at the Verona Lions Club on Verona Sand Road. I saw Bellfonix perform in Harrowmith earlier this summer and they are not to be missed.