Community singing circle | All ages & levels welcome (children accompanied by an adult) | Bring a chair/blanket and water | Register at jerikatherinehowell.com/workshops | Free (donations welcome)

Come Sing x City Parks is a seasonal, monthly place-based folk music program that sparks creativity, connection and civic engagement through outdoor community singing circles in Frankfort, KY city parks. Each 2-hour session involves group intros, grounding in the park's history and connection to today, simple vocal warm-ups, group singing and closing reflection. This program is public, free and open to all ages and levels of experience. Donations are welcome and will supportJeri Katherine's community music programming.

We sing easy-to-learn, repeatable songs in the oral tradition (by ear) including songs sung in unison, rounds, call-and-echo/response, ballads and parts/layered songs. The songs will be original compositions by Jeri Katherine Howell and contemporary songleaders, plus traditional songs from American folk, Appalachian, English, Irish, Scottish, African American and participants' cultures. The songs' themes will explore the historical and contemporary context of the 2 featured city parks, Leslie Morris Park (Fort Hill) and Cove Spring Park & Nature Preserve (Cove Spring).

These parks have played an integral role in shaping Frankfort's history and natural and cultural heritage. Fort Hill is a Civil War historic site and hiking haven. Cove Spring was the site of Frankfort's first public water system, and is now a State Nature Preserve, home to 1 federally endangered plant specie and 2 state endangered species. Fort Hill song themes may include peace, civic engagement, the role of community in disaster response and resilience, social justice, and Civil Rights. Cove Spring themes may include diversity, connection to nature and stewardship of natural resources in the Lower Kentucky River watershed.

Each session, singers will learn new songs, explore local history and its connection to the practice of Come Sing, create with neighbors, and leave feeling hopeful, connected and inspired. Especially when experienced regularly, the songs and practice of community singing are tools to both accompany life's daily challenges and celebrations and adapt to living together in our communities. Come Sing x City Parks combines the physical and emotional wellbeing benefits of singing and time in nature to create an experience that boosts moods, eases stress, and helps us build trust, empathy and empowerment as a community. The program embraces interdependence, shared decision-making, joy and belonging – in our body, our voice and with each other. Over time, these experiences nourish a sense of self-efficacy to confidently share one's voice and opinion, spark social cohesion, support community wellbeing and inspire civic action. Come Sing highlights the reciprocal relationship in caring for self and other beings, and is a practice of embodying the Commonwealth we wish to create.

This program is in partnership with Frankfort Parks, Recreation & Historic Sites and is sponsored by Music to Life.