“AS WE CELEBRATE THE BIRTH OF AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE, I HOPE YOU AND YOUR FAMILY ENJOY CARMELFEST AND CELEBRATING THE GREATEST NATION ON EARTH. HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!”
Steve Krusie got involved with CarmelFest in 2016 and became the event’s chair in 2020.
His favorite CarmelFest moment came last year when he rode in the parade for the first time. As the car he was in passed by spectators along the route, they cheered, and many said, “thank you.”
“People were sincerely thanking me and our CarmelFest leadership team for everything we do to make this Independence Day festival the biggest and best Fourth of July festival in Indiana,” Krusie said. “And all the while I kept saying ‘thank you’ back to the folks along the parade route for their support of our festival and their willingness to buy merchandise from our marketplace vendors and lunch/dinner from our vendors.”
Krusie, who started as the event’s entertainment committee chair and later served as parade volunteer coordinator, is in his final year as CarmelFest chair. He is stepping aside after his initial three-year term “to let new blood be infused into CarmelFest at the top of our festival leadership team.”
Krusie said CarmelFest is in improved financial condition because of corporate sponsors; the leadership team has found ways to be more fiscally judicious and accountable; and, most importantly, the festival enjoys strong support from the community and volunteers.
“Whether they’re helping with parade logistics or participating with our trash troopers, it truly is inspiring to see how people just want to be connected with each other,” Krusie said.
Jeff Lenz, who has been a CarmelFest volunteer for the past four years, has accepted an invitation from the Rotary Club of Carmel, organizer and sponsor of the event, to be Krusie’s successor.
Lenz described Krusie as a “great mentor and friend.”
“He is very detail-oriented and a great leader at getting everyone to get the task done that they were assigned,” Lenz said. “Steve led us out of COVID and right into getting CarmelFest back on track. The momentum this year has been great, and with a major sponsor on board (Merchants Bank of Indiana), it has really made a difference in the mood. I look forward to taking this momentum into 2024.”
Though he is stepping down as event chair, Krusie still will be involved with CarmelFest.
“But frankly, I can’t make up my mind where my experience as chair would be best used,” he said. “Lots of options, but I’ll likely fill in where there’s a gap as folks transition off the leadership team.”
news@currentincarmel.com
The Rotary Club of Carmel recently announced the recipients of two of its most prestigious annual honors.
Steve Krusie, a Rotarian who has chaired CarmelFest since 2020, has been unanimously selected as the Rotarian of the Year by the Rotary Club of Carmel. The distinction honors a member of the club for service, loyalty and recognition of the ideals of Rotary.
Brian Kelly, co-founder and retired publisher of Current Publishing, has received the Rotary Outstanding Service Award, which is presented to a non-Rotarian who has demonstrated “service above self” (the Rotary Club’s motto) and made a lasting impact on the community.
– Steve KrusieBoth award recipients will be recognized during the CarmelFest parade.
“Whether they’re helping with parade logistics or participating with our trash troopers, it truly is inspiring to see how people just want to be connected with each other.”
By Mark Ambrogi mark@youarecurrent.com
Phyllis Horton Rockhill might not be a real pioneer of Carmel, but her family roots in Hamilton County run deep. Rockhill will be one of the grand marshals for the July 4 CarmelFest parade. Because the county is celebrating its bicentennial this year, descendants of Hamilton County pioneers were selected as grand marshals.
Rockhill, 99, was born in Noblesville but moved to Carmel when she was 2 years old. Her family rented a house in Carmel for two years and then bought a home at 611 N. Range Line Rd.
“Carmel has always been a good place to live,” Rockhill said. “We’ve had very little crime. We never locked our doors (growing up). You didn’t have to. It was a safe, happy town and everyone knew each other.”
Rockhill said the family moved to Carmel because her father, Oakley Horton, was going to start a meat market with his brother, Floyd. The downtown Carmel store was called Hortons Meat Market on Main Street. Rockhill said she believes the store closed in 1956.
“My grandfather (Marl) already had a meat market in Noblesville,” Rockhill said. “Floyd was crippled from having polio, so he couldn’t take being on his feet the whole time. So, he got out of the business. My dad would go to work at 8 o’clock in the morning and stay there until 9 at night.”
The Hamilton County ties go deep, as her great-great grandfather donated the land for Hortonville, an unincorporated community north of Westfield.
She graduated from Carmel High School in 1942 with a class of 35.
For the final six weeks of her senior year, Rockhill was pulled out of class and pressed into duty to teach a third-grade class.
“They knew I wanted to be a teacher,” she said.
After graduating from Butler University in 1945, she taught in Indianapolis.
“I taught for two years and then had a child but went back for another semester,” she said. “I taught 28 years here in Carmel, plus a lot of years of substituting. I helped with their kindergarten when I was staying home with my children.”
When a teacher was fired, Rockhill said officials wanted her to finish out the last six weeks of school, so she substituted in Carmel during that time.
“Then Carmel began to bulge at the seams (enrollment-wise),” she said. “They said, ‘We need you, but we don’t have a (classroom) for you.’ So, they put me in the Carmel Friends Church basement with my fourth-grade class. They would bus us to the school for lunch and recess and then back. We did that until they opened up Orchard Park Elementary (during the spring semester).”
When Carmel Elementary opened, she started teaching there.
Rockhill retired in 1984. Her husband, Myron, retired earlier that year after being an accountant for Indiana Farm Bureau Co-op. The couple was married 74 years before he died at age 99 in 2021.
Rockhill’s parents graduated from Westfield High School.
“My roots are very deep here,” she said.
Rockhill’s daughter, Jean Rockhill Pluchar, 64, lives on the east side of Carmel and works in Noblesville. She has two sons, Jerry, 74 of Commerce, Ga., and Jim, 72, of Louisville.
A former parade director for CarmelFest who has remained involved with the event is planning to step aside.
Peggy Powell, who headed up the parade committee from 2009 to 2017 and remained in an advisory and has since administrative capacity, said she has decided it’s time to step away from the event. She will continue to serve as community grants chair for the Rotary Club of Carmel, which organizes and sponsors CarmelFest.
“I think I’ve just done it long enough,” Powell said. “It’s time to let other people step in.”
The Allied Solutions CarmelFest Parade will start at 10:30 a.m. July 4.
Bec Hunter, CarmelFest parade director, said Powell has handled administrative duties in recent years, including securing parking lots for stag-
ing areas, ordering T-shirts for volunteers and making sure the parade has sound equipment. Powell’s knowledge also was valuable in helping Hunter after she took over for parade director Barbara Ellis, who served in that capacity for two years.
Hunter said the parade committee will be looking for someone to step in and perform Powell’s duties.
“I’ll be sorry to see her go,” Hunter said. “We’ve kind of been joined at the hip during the month of June. I will miss her tremendously.”
Powell, who retired in 2007 as a school secretary and officer manager at Snacks Crossing Elementary School in Pike Township, said a favorite memory from her time as parade director is when then-Indiana Gov. Mike Pence and his wife, Karen, agreed to appear in the parade. She has seen the annual event grow during her involvement with it.
By Ann Marie Shambaugh AnnMarie@youarecurrent.comThe Carmel Fire Dept. is hoping to see more red than white and blue on July 4 when it attempts to set a world record for the most people wearing fire helmets at one time just before the CarmelFest parade begins.
Between 9 and 10 a.m., volunteers will distribute approximately 30,000 plastic red fire hats to people gathered along the parade route. At approximately 10:05 a.m., everyone wearing a fire hat will be asked to step into the road – which will be shut down for the parade – so a drone can pass by to document the attempt. Participants should be able to return to their spots along the route by 10:20 a.m., with the parade beginning 10 minutes later.
“We can’t do it without the community coming out to CarmelFest. The good thing is, in the past, they’ve always come out, so we assume
The Carmel Fire Department and CarmelFest organizers are attempting to set a world record for the most fire helmets worn at one time. The CFD Auxiliary is selling T-shirts to support the effort. (Photo by Ann Marie Shambaugh)
they’ll be here,” CFD spokesman Tim Griffin said. “We’re hoping they’re going to want to be a part of this.” Learn more at linktr.ee/ cfdauxiliary.
E denotes of east of the median on Range Line Road. W denotes west of the median on Range Line Road.
34 - E -
Meteorologist Kevin Gregory
35 - W - Indiana Ballet Conservatory
36 - E - Sahara Grotto Mini Cars
37 - W - Carmel Masonic Family
38 - E - Carmel City Court Judge Brian Poindexter
39 - W - Mercy Road Carmel Kids Camp
40 - E - Mary - E - ckard, Clay Township Board
41 - W - Wonderland - E - ntertainment
42 - E - 104-5 WJJK Morning Show with Greg & Joni
43 - W - Carmel Clay Public Library
44 - E - Booth Tarkington Civic Theatre
45 - W - Crumbl Cookies
46 - E - Master Yoo's Tae Kwon Do 47 - W - WTHR - 13News 48 - E - Indianapolis Indians Mascot Rowdie 49 - W - Hamilton County Sheriff's Office 50 -
The parade steps off at 10:30 a.m. on July 4th at AAA Way and Carmel Drive. The parade travels west on Carmel Drive to Range Line Road, turning north to Main Street, traveling east on Main and ending at the Richland/4th Avenue stoplight west of Carmel High School.
The parade steps off at 10:30 am on July 4th at AAA Way and Carmel Drive. The parade travels west on Carmel Drive to Rangeline Road, turning north to Main Street, traveling east on Main and ending at the Richland/4th Avenue stoplight west of Carmel High School.
SONGBOOK ACADEMY IN CONCERT*
Sat Jul 22 at 7pm
DAUGHTRY: BARE BONES TOUR*
Wed Aug 9 at 7:30pm
SPYRO GYRA*
Sat Aug 12 at 8pm
BEN HARPER*
Tue Aug 15 at 7:30pm
LIFE WITH THE AFTERLIFE: TRUE TALES OF THE PARANORMAL WITH GHOST HUNTER
AMY BRUNI
Sat Sep 16 at 8pm
UPTOWN: MOTOWN REMIXED
Thu Sep 28 at 7:30pm
ANIMANIACS: IN CONCERT
Thu Oct 5 at 7:30pm
THE RIGHTEOUS BROTHERS: BILL MEDLEY & BUCKY HEARD
Fri Oct 6 at 8pm
THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH*
Sun Oct 8 at 7pm
THE ROBERT CRAY BAND
Wed Oct 11 at 7:30pm
WISH YOU WERE HERE: THE SIGHT & SOUND OF PINK FLOYD
Sat Oct 14 at 8pm
STEWART COPELAND: POLICE DERANGED FOR ORCHESTRA
Thu Oct 19 at 7:30pm
HARRY CHAPIN AT 80: A RETROSPECTIVE, FEATURING THE CHAPIN FAMILY
Fri Oct 20 at 8pm
BILL FRISELL FIVE AND AMBROSE AKINMUSIRE’S OWL SONG
Sat Oct 21 at 8pm
ACADEMY OF ST MARTIN IN THE FIELDS CHAMBER ENSEMBLE
Sat Oct 28 at 8pm
AN EVENING WITH BRUCE COCKBURN
Wed Nov 1 at 7:30pm
BÉLA FLECK, ZAKIR HUSSAIN, EDGAR MEYER WITH RAKESH CHAURASIA
Thu Nov 2 at 7:30pm
GRACE POTTER
Fri Nov 3 at 8pm
ETTA MAY
Fri Nov 3 at 7:30pm
AN INTIMATE EVENING WITH DAVID FOSTER & KATHARINE MCPHEE
Sat Nov 4 at 8pm
TRES SOULS
Sat Nov 4 at 8pm
THE LITTLE MERMEN: THE ULTIMATE DISNEY TRIBUTE BAND
Sun Nov 5 at 3pm & 7pm
EASTON CORBIN
Thu Nov 9 at 7:30pm
GREGORIAN: PURE CHANTS
Fri Nov 10 at 8pm
CANDACE BUSHNELL: TRUE TALES OF SEX, SUCCESS AND SEX AND THE CITY
Sun Nov 12 at 7pm
ANNE SOFIE VON OTTER & BROOKLYN RIDER SONGS OF LOVE AND DEATH
Fri Nov 17 at 8pm
MESHELL NDEGEOCELLO
Sat Nov 18 at 8pm
THE BLACK MARKET TRUST
Sun Nov 19 at 7pm
VIENNA BOYS CHOIR: CHRISTMAS IN VIENNA
Fri Nov 24 at 2pm
JIM BRICKMAN: A JOYFUL CHRISTMAS
Thu Nov 30 at 7:30pm
THE MIDTOWN MEN: HOLIDAY HITS
Fri Dec 1 at 8pm
DAVE KOZ & FRIENDS CHRISTMAS TOUR 2023
Tue Dec 5 at 7:30pm
JON MCLAUGHLIN: HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Fri Dec 8 at 8pm
PRESERVATION HALL JAZZ BAND HOLIDAY SHOW
Sat Dec 9 at 8pm
BIG BAD VOODOO DADDY’S WILD & SWINGIN’ HOLIDAY PARTY
Wed Dec 13 at 7:30pm
AN EVENING WITH BRANFORD MARSALIS
Fri Jan 26 at 8pm
ALAN CUMMING & ARI SHAPIRO: OCH & OY! A CONSIDERED CABARET
Sat Feb 3 at 8pm
MARIACHI HERENCIA DE MÉXICO: HEREDEROS
Fri Feb 9 at 8pm
SOFIA PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA
Fri Feb 23 at 8pm
ARETHA’S GOLD: CLASSIC ALBUMS LIVE TRIBUTE TO ARETHA FRANKLIN
Fri Feb 24 at 8pm
THE IRISH TENORS
Fri Mar 8 at 8pm
CARRIE NEWCOMER WITH PIANIST GARY WALTERS & STRING QUARTET
Sat Mar 9 at 8pm
BRUCE HORNSBY WITH YMUSIC
Sat Mar 9 at 8pm
IMAGINATION MOVERS
Sun Mar 10 at 1pm & 4pm
JESSE COOK
Sun Apr 7 at 7pm
RAY CHEN
Fri Apr 12 at 8pm
SAMMY MILLER AND THE CONGREGATION
Fri Apr 19 at 8pm
RUMOURS: A FLEETWOOD MAC TRIBUTE
Sat Apr 20 at 8pm
MICHAEL FEINSTEIN & SPECIAL GUEST
Fri
This year, the KidsZone at CarmelFest returns with new rides, ticketing guidelines and a stage with performances geared for young audiences.
The KidsZone will be open from 1 to 9 p.m. July 3 and noon to 9 p.m. July 4 during the two-day event in and surrounding Carmel Civic Square.
William Howard II and Christine
Zoccola return as KidsZone co-chairs.
“Of the three years we’ve done it, we think this will be our best one,” Zoccola said.
Changes include reduced attraction costs and the ability to use the same set of tickets for any of the attractions in the KidsZone area. Individual tickets are $3 each.
“We’ve been really working with the vendors to try to keep the price down as much as we can,” Zoccola
said. “We’re still confirming with the vendors, but it looks like most rides will either be one ticket or two tickets per ride, so we’re hoping it’s going to be a lot more affordable than it has been in past years.”
Howard and Zoccola said they have listened to feedback from Carmel families, which drove their negotiations with vendors to reduce costs for attractions.
According to Howard and Zoccola, KidsZone will feature new attractions, in addition to familiar favorites such as the rock-climbing wall, bungee trampoline and inflatables.
“We’ve got two new rides that we haven’t had in the past. One is called
the Ballistic Swing, and it’s basically a big swing that spins the kids around, and the other one is the Pirate’s Revenge, which is like a huge ship that rocks back and forth,” Zoccola said.
Additionally, KidsZone will feature a variety of performances on its own stage behind Carmel City Hall. Zoccola said the performances are tailored to children and will continue throughout both days of the festival.
“We’ve really tried to include DEI, so we’re looking at acts that are across the board,” Howard said. “We’re trying to get a very diverse lineup.”
Howard said the pair conducted a broad search within the Carmel community for KidsZone performers, which will include Disney Princesses for meet-and-greets in addition to performances by Abundant Youth Empowerment, Academy of Gregory Hancock, Ballet Theatre of Carmel and Master Yoo’s World Class Tae Kwon Do.
Howard and Zoccola said they are excited about the future of KidsZone as it continues to expand.
“It’s truly going to be its own entity now,” Howard said. “You can go to KidsZone to hang out and be in KidsZone for the whole day.”
Does your kid love a challenge? If so, your child should participate in the 2023 Kids TRI for Kids Series! Designed for kids ages 7-14, Kids TRI o ers safe races where kids learn the value of fun and friendly competition and healthy fitness habits.
2023 DATES & LOCATIONS:
June 11 Kathy Dowling Aquatics Center - Greenfield
July 4 Zionsville High School
July 30 TRI Indy White River State Park
Aug 13 Riviera Club
Aug 27 Greenwood Freedom Springs Aquatics Park
The 2023 edition of Spark Buttons is available, offering discounts and exclusive deals from local participating merchants in addition to providing some patriotic flair.
For more than two decades, the sale of Spark Buttons has helped fund CarmelFest fireworks. Jeff Worrell, longtime coordinator of the Spark Button program, said this year’s goal is to raise $11,000.
“We’ve been selling them since 1994,” Worrell said. “I’ve never missed a year. We didn’t sell during the pandemic year because there was no CarmelFest.”
Roughly 2,500 buttons will be sold through July 4 at All Things Carmel, 110 W. Main St.; Carmel gazebo concerts; the Carmel Farmers Market; and CarmelFest. With the button comes a pro-
mo card that can be used to redeem exclusive offers that are valid through Dec. 31, unless otherwise noted. Buttons are $10.
Learn more at CarmelFestSparkButton.com.
The CarmelFest music lineup returns under a familiar brand.
CarmelFest Chair Steve Krusie said the Rotary Club of Carmel has renewed the registered trademark for Hoosier Crossroads Music Festival, a name used in the past for part of the music lineup at the two-day event. The name launched in 2017 when an event previously known as Guitars and Stars was rebranded as Hoosier Crossroads Music Festival.
This year, the Hoosier Crossroads Music Festival brand will be used for all musical acts.
“We’re going to start implementing that this year and calling the two stages at Carter Green and the Gazebo as part of the Hoosier Crossroads Music Festival at CarmelFest,” Krusie said.
Krusie said conversations are ongoing within the Rotary Club to determine if Hoosier Crossroads Music Festival should continue to be part of CarmelFest or if the club should use it separately and create an additional fundraiser.
CarmelFest is the Rotary Club of Carmel’s primary fundraiser for presenting grants to local organizations and nonprofits.
The COVID-19 pandemic canceled the 2020 CarmelFest. The name was forgotten when it came time to stage the 2021 and 2022 festivals.
“After the pandemic, I came in as the chair and I wasn’t involved in all this earlier,” Krusie said. “The renewal for the trademark came up (earlier this year) and I thought it was interesting. Because of the lateness of it, we just decided now to let it fall under the CarmelFest umbrella and that’s how we’ll start working with it. If it can grow beyond that, that is a conversation to be had, but not before this year’s CarmelFest.”
JULY 3
1 to 2:30 p.m.: Nauti Yachtys
3 to 4:15 p.m.: The Beatless
4:45 to 6 p.m.: Phone Club
6:30 to 7:45 p.m.: Pushing Daisy’s
Band
8:15 to 9:30 p.m.: Huckleberry Funk
JULY 4
12 to 1:45 p.m.: My Yellow Rickshaw
2:15 to 3:45 p.m.: Tommy Baldwin
4:15 to 5:45 p.m.: The Wonderlands
6:15 to 7:30 p.m.: Dude!
8 to 9:30 p.m.: Sadie Johnson
GAZEBO
JULY 3
1 to 2:30 p.m.: CarmelFest Has Talent
3 to 4 p.m.: Allison Victoria
4:30 to 5:30 p.m.: Jeff Day
6 to 7 p.m.: Kara Cole
8 to 9:30 p.m.: Indiana Wind Symphony
JULY 4
12 to 12:45 p.m.: Carmel Music Academy
1 to 2:45 p.m.: School of Rock
3:15 to 4:45 p.m.: Nick Dittmeier & The Sawdusters
5:15 to 7 p.m.: Touch of Grass
8 to 9:30 p.m.: Carmel Symphony Orchestra
