The Man is coming back! We are hosting a talent show - we're calling it Rock the Rafters because that is what we expect to do - this Sunday July 26 at The Club and it is being emceed by Garrison Keillor, one of the owners of The Club. Fresh off the end of his Prairie Home Companion season, Keillor energized the area and about 10,000 of us with a remarkble 4th of July celebration in Avon. He's coming back to enjoy a smaller venue at The Club.

The Club opens at 4:00 Sunday, and the show will begin at 7:00 p.m.

 We have a tremendous line-up of area artists, thanks to local musicians Dee Holsinger and Doug Millaway. You'l hear from Pachanga (a Stearns County South American and Cuban music group) to fiddler Alisha Neuman to Sinatra sound-alike Alex Willard plus 14 other artists/group.

Word barely got out about the event and we sold out of reservations for dinner. We do have some tables on the lakeside deck that we will keep open for walk-ins, so if you were unable to get an inside reservation you could try for an outside deck table. While the sight lines won't be ideal, we will have speakers out there for good sound projection.

Our many thanks in advance to Doug and Dee for all their work, and to the Avon Area Arts for once again providing not just muscle but brain strength to bring fine music to the area.

We hope you can join us!

If you are thinking of joining us for what we are affectionately calling Prairie Stock (ala Woodstock and the anticipated number of Prairie Home Companion fans to Avon on July 4th), then here is some addtional information to help you plan your day:

Parking will be available in the Avon Elementary School lot and the Avon Community Church lot, which are both just 2 blocks past the Wobegon Park. The park and these two lots are all on Avon Ave which is also County Rd 9.

Additonal parking is being allowed by the generous owners of Lumber One, on Avon Ave. Please only park on their lot, NOT on the grass, as they have a sprinkler system underneath the grass and we are planning on that grassy area for an overflow for people to sit on.

Parking at PSI on Blattner Drive is also being offered by the generous owners of PSI, and Jeff Meyer has generously offered up spaces on land he owns adjacent to the park on 1st St. just south of the park.

Are you a bicycler? If so, you can park at the St. John's University exit along the County Road and bike to the park, a smooth, level distance of about 7 miles. Perhaps put a blanket in your backpack for seating once you arrive at the park in Avon.

The Wobegon Park and food vendors will be opening at 1:00 on Saturday for action (we formerly said 2:00). This means seating will not be open until 1:00, and we respectfully ask that everyone honor this opening time.

See you on Saturday! Come hungry - we're serving PIE!