Summer is in full swing and, even with the record-breaking heat, plenty of people have been turning out to volunteer or attend events. The crowds at the Music off Main concerts in Heritage Park have also been record-breaking. The last concert in the series was on Friday and a big thank you goes out to our own Sumner Arts Commission for all their hard work and dedication to bringing a great musical lineup while working with this year’s limited budget. That is one committed bunch of folks who turn out every Friday night to set up and tap their toes with the crowds.

And I think we all know what is coming this weekend. That’s right. It’s the Summer Arts Festival. The Sumner Downtown Association is gearing up for its onion burger booth and a big thanks goes out to our Heritage Bank chairwomen, Ann Fish and Nina Burlingame, for planning and organizing one of our many fundraisers. Be sure to come by the booth to grab a burger and meet one of your favorite business owners flipping burgers at the grill this weekend.

But that’s not all that’s happening this weekend. It’s double your pleasure, double your fun with Sumner’s Relay For Life event at Sunset Chev Stadium. There’s two times the reasons for coming downtown on Friday and Saturday as Sumner celebrates its commitment to cancer awareness. Relay teams from all over the city will be at the stadium, including one from the city of Sumner. A little bird told me the team’s recent golf tournament raised more than $5,000 for the cause, so I’ll be looking forward to Councilman Leroy Goff’s final report for the Relay event.

And have I told you lately how much I like Roger Knutson? Every year he graciously donates approximately 15,000 daffodil bulbs for us to bag, label and sell so we can continue to fund our award-winning community daffodil float. Of course, little did our bulb packaging chairwoman, Carol Whaley, realize when she scheduled the bagging party that it would be on the hottest day of the year out at the barns.

Sheesh! I thought I’d given up working in the bulb farms when I was 14, but there I was back in the heat and dust and grime July 29. The only thing that made me feel better was that I was not alone.

Local trouble makers Stan Purvis, Jon Swanson, Glenn Whaley, Gordy Andersen and more were there to cheer me up.

A big thank you to Sara and Fayth Meredith, Michelle Thompson, Chris Gaul, Jon and Joanne Swanson, Stan and Cecelia Purvis, Pam Prasch, and Ruth and Gerry Valenta who braved the heat and helped package the bulbs which are now available at local banks and businesses for $5.

So don’t forget to come downtown this weekend. And because Sumner is the rhubarb pie capital, be sure and stop at the Rotary Pie Booth for their traditional scrumptious strawberry-rhubarb pie.

You’re sure to see familiar faces at either event, but even if you’re new to our Sumner community, downtown this weekend is a great place to make new friends.

Just two more reasons folks like to spend some time here.