We recently met with Commissioner Wayne Eichelkraut and City of Ottawa Administrative Assistant Alaina Iverson, of the Ottawa Special Events Committee. We got to hear about some of the exciting things the Special Events Committee has planned for this summer, as well as some of the history of your favorite events – like Music in the Park, Jordan Block Jams, and the Kids Fishing Rodeo. We also learned about some exciting news, Friendship Days is back for 2026!

First, Wayne told us a bit about the history of Music in the Park. It’s been an Ottawa staple for nearly 30 years. It’s a local event, but has grown to be loved by tourists as well.

“I’ve been doing Music in the Park since 1999. It was going on a little bit before that. Don Gillette had worked on it before that. It was more orientated back then, towards the patriotic and gospel music, and big bands. In ‘99, I joined with them when I became Commissioner. It was great. I actually got along with them guys anyway because I worked on their parades for many, many years,” Wayne said.

“So we got things going, and we made a few minor changes early, but then it seemed like, there was less and less big bands, so we started orientating to trying to get different bands in, because the generations were changing. We did that starting in ‘99, 2000, 2001. We’ve always been in Washington Park, it’s great, because there’s a little bit of shade, things are nice, and people have enjoyed it. It’s a big deal. And I will have to say, believe it or not, COVID made Music in the Park. Because we used to have crowds of one or two hundred. When COVID came, we mapped it all out so we were friendly, and all of a sudden, we’re up five, six, seven hundred people. Because, they had nothing else they could do. They were bored being in their houses. It just grew just like that. And thanks to Alaina here and Special Events Committee, we’ve picked up bands that they really want. We’ve orientated more towards the crowd,” Wayne said.

“We send out a survey at the end of every season of Music in the Park,” Alaina said, “asking for feedback from the people who attend. And we use that when we go to booking our next year. So if there’s a certain genre of music that we’re missing and that people want, we take all of that into consideration, and that’s what we use to plan for the following year. So it has been working out pretty good for us.”

“It’s kind of surprising, though. We try not to bring anybody back too often, but some of the bands, they want back all the time. I mean, like Rosie and the Riveters and Johnny Lyons and the Pride is a great singer. They want all them people back. It’s pretty good for us,” Wayne added.

Music in the Park has certainly grown over the years. We’re always happy to recommend it to visitors who stop by! It’s become a favorite Saturday tradition of tourists and locals alike. This year, the Fourth of July falls on a Saturday, so we’re in for a special iteration of Music in the Park!

“Music in the Park is moving for the first time to the Jordan Block, because of the Fourth of July. We have Libido Funk Circus playing, and that’s a little bit different than the bands we usually have, but it’s the Fourth of July. We’re looking at basically getting it out there, and for people to enjoy, it’s right there by the Old Central School location… It’s going to be great, great viewing. People get to listen to the band, walk across the street, that’s where the fireworks are going to be. It’s going to be a whole number different,” Wayne said.

“There’ll be a whole 4th of July experience celebrating our 250 years. That’s for sure,” Alaina added.

There will definitely be plenty of celebration! Another staple of Music in the Park has been the food trucks. This year, food will be a bit different this season. Of course, there are special plans for the 4th of July celebration of Music in the Park.

“Typically for Music in the Park when it’s located in Washington Square,” Alaina said, “we’ve pivoted from food trucks that we’ve had in years prior. It just wasn’t lucrative for them in that short window. We asked the community in our survey and we took their feedback for this year. And we’ve reached out to some nonprofit organizations local here. And we have different organizations like the American Legion and the VFW signed up to do grilling at Music in the Park. Whether it’s tenderloins, pork chops, hot dogs. That’s our lineup for the season. The first two weekends were really successful.”

“This upcoming weekend at the Jordan Block, because it’s the 4th of July, we have more than just the hot dogs. That’ll be in that Lincoln Place parking strip, there’s going to be Tropical Sno, La Michoacana will be downtown, there’s a dirty soda truck that’s gonna be set up. There will be a variety of options during the 4th of July celebrations, during the day and the evening. The Legion is grilling out, noon to 2. We’re really excited to provide affordable meals for all. And then at the same time, it’s benefiting our nonprofits,” she said.

Lots of excitement and great spots to grab a bite to eat are planned! Next, Wayne and Alaina told us a bit about Jordan Block Jams, a spinoff of sorts from Music in the Park.

“Thanks to Alaina here, we’ve actually grown away from Music in the Park, and came up with a new thing called Jordan Block Jams, which this year there will only be two bands so far. We might have another one on July 31st, but we’re looking at that,” Wayne said.

“With Music in the Park, we are trying to kind of somehow bridge the gap between the generations,” Alaina said, “So Music in the Park, we play a lot of older music, and so our thought of bringing Jordan Block jams to the Jordan Block, would be to hit other genres of music and open it up to all people. So it’s been really successful this year, we have July 10th, Sarah’s Place, which is a Noah Kahan and Zach Bryan tribute band. And then August 14th, we have Hotel California, which is the original Eagles tribute band, coming from Canada. So we’re really excited to bring them to our town, and hopefully we can continue this tradition of Jordan Block Jams into the amphitheater once that gets developed,” she said.

 With plenty of opportunities for a fun, free concert, Ottawa is just the place to catch some tunes this summer. Alaina also told us about some of the other festivities planned for the 4th.

“To kick off the entire celebration, at 5:45, the City of Ottawa has a Poet Laureate, and she will be doing a short poem commemorating the celebration of 250 years and then right after that, we’ll transition into the Libido Funk Circus band performing, that is from 6 to 8 p.m. When that concludes, along Woodward Memorial Drive is where the Color Guard will walk down, and they’ll, they’ll do their [performance] and the national anthem at that Veterans Plaza. Ryan Witherspoon will be singing the national anthem during that. And that that will be the kickoff to the fireworks,” she said.

 Ottawa’s 4th of July fireworks and 250th celebration are sure to be a spectacle! But that’s not all this month. We also got to hear about the Kids Fishing Rodeo, a favorite of locals and tourists alike. Just as exciting, Alaina and Wayne shared some news about Friendship Days, an iconic Ottawa tradition.

 “We are actually going to be, the two of us, and the Special Events Committee, are actually going to be doing Friendship Days. It’s kind of a holding place for Riverfest, ‘till we get the amphitheater done,” Wayne said, “We’re looking at a band for that, but we got the sidewalk sales, we got Patty Gray’s out there with her kids… There’s a car show with a craft and vendor sale. And I’ll be doing the Kids Fishing Rodeo. This will be [starting] the 26th, it’s the last week of July… Thursday would be the 30th, which would be the Fish and Rodeo.”

“Now, the Fishing Rodeo has moved, from the Illinois River, we are moving it to the pond at Dayton Ridge Golf Course… 39 years I’ve been actually doing a fishing rodeo. So that’s been a little bit of a long time. But I’ve always wanted to do it at a pond. I’ve always wanted to have a pond. And we finally got one that we can actually use. And once Marla, and Councilmen, and everybody else and the rec board, gets done with Dayton Ridge, besides the soccer fields, this is going to be a beautiful park. I mean a huge, beautiful park. So it’ll be great. Come on out. It’s from 5 to 7, there’ll be plenty of fish. Enjoy yourself. There’s always prizes for every kid. I make sure there’s prizes for everybody. Just come out and enjoy yourself. It’ll be a little bit different than what we did. So a lot more enjoyable, actually, I think. And then we can work out a couple other things,” Wayne said.

 So much exciting news! A new home for the Fishing Rodeo and Friendship Days is back for another year. We asked Wayne what he thinks keeps drawing in attendants for the Fishing Rodeo for years on end.

“Basically, I’m looking at the idea, now I got kids that come back that are grown-ups that’ll bring in their kids. That’s kind of a long period of time, but basically, grandparents are bringing their grandkids, too. But it is, if you’ve got one kid out there, and you create one kid doing some fishing, instead of out there doing some mischief, and drugs, and other things, that’s a goal. That’s a plus to anything. And we do have a lot of fishing here. We’ve got two rivers. We’ve got ponds all over the place. A lot of kids don’t get this opportunity, and they don’t even have a fishing pole. I make sure they’ve got a fishing pole,” Wayne said.

“My daughter attended the fishing rodeo at two years old. That was our first time fishing, and she was hooked,” Alaina said, “and she can’t wait for this year’s. Every time we cross the bridge, she’s like, are we fishing again? Soon. And she slept with the pole. We need Wayne to help us, so fishing rodeo, here we come!”

“It’s just something for the kids to do,” Wayne said, “It’s really fun, and it’s an easy event to run, and it makes a lot of kids happy, and that’s the goal at the end of the day. I got a lot of volunteers that help me out. I mean, they just come right just like that. So it’s great. So, I mean, they enjoy it. And we usually get anywhere from 80 to 100 kids. So that’s pretty good.”

The Kids Fishing Rodeo is a classic Ottawa event, alongside the rest of Friendship Days. We asked what else you can expect to see this year.

“That whole week of July will be downtown business deals. Whether they’re on the sidewalk or in their storefronts. In conjunction with that, Thursday, July 30th is the Fishing Rodeo. And then Friday, July 31st, the Patty Gray’s Dancers perform in the Jordan Block. We’re looking for a band for that night. And we are looking to potentially book a band to follow up the dancers on that Friday evening. And then Saturday, August first, is the 42nd annual car show… and they have partnered with the Craft and Vendor Sale. They’ll be in the Jordan Block, Lincoln Place, and then that Upper East parking lot for that event… And then in addition to August 1st car show and craft and vendor sale, there’s the usual farmer’s market and music in the park,” Alaina said.

“And then August 3rd, to close out Friendship Days, we are planning our free pool party at Riordan Pool this year. Last year, the Special Events Committee hosted a free party to end out Friendship Days as well. So we’re going to do that again, and we’re going to partner with City Rec. So we’re really excited for that, and details to come within the next week or so,” she said.

There is so much to look forward to for the 4th, Music in the Park, and the rest of the Special Events Committee’s plans! We can’t wait to see what else they have in store. Many thanks to Alaina and Wayne for stopping by! Stay tuned to hear more about Friendship Days in the upcoming weeks.