“Fridays After Five” kicks off July 10 at the Shenandoah Elks Lodge

Are you free on Friday?

This July, First National Bank and the Shenandoah Elks Lodge are collaborating to host “Fridays After Five,” an event that will feature live music every Friday in July at the Shenandoah Elks Lodge. Opening night is July 10 with guitarist Jeff Slater performing.

“This event has been very successful in Creston,” said Randy Huewe, president of First National Bank. “Word has spread to Shenandoah that our bank helps host Fridays After Five and we’ve heard requests to have this event from the Shenandoah community and on social media. So, here we go. Our bank will pay for all the music and we hope this is an event the community embraces and looks forward to each week.”

Music will begin shortly after 5 p.m. each Friday on the east lawn of the Elks and will wind down around 7 p.m. This is an outside event for those 18 and older but it’s asked that social distancing practices be followed and if you or someone in your family is feeling unwell that you please don’t attend the event.

Admission is $5 each Friday. But, the first 100 attendees (21 and over) will receive a free drink token. Jon Skillern, manager at the Shenandoah Elks Lodge, has been instrumental in organizing and pushing this event forward in Shenandoah including coming to Creston to attend a Fridays After Five to get familiar with the event. 

“We’re excited about getting these going here this year,” Skillern said. “What’s better than live music on a Friday night? We’ll have staff outside selling cold drinks. Come up after work, bring your friends and unwind from the week and kickoff your weekend the right way.”

Skillern and Michael J. Bauer, president of First National Bank in Shenandoah, are currently lining up organizations to volunteer on Fridays to work the gate, collect admission and ID and wristband attendees. Volunteers will also work with staff at the Elks to make sure the event runs smoothly. In return, the volunteer organization will receive all gate admissions for the night they’re working which in the past has been anywhere from $300-$1,000. The organization can use the funds to support their cause. The first volunteer group on July 10 will be the Shenandoah Optimist Club.

“We’ve always been a bank that supports our communities,” Bauer said. “In this case, we think live music will draw people to the Elks, gate admissions go to bettering Shenandoah and when the event is over around 7 we think local eateries and establishments will also see the benefits of Fridays After Five.”

The artist lineup after Slater includes Tyler Folkerts July 17, Levi Smith on July 24 and Paul Hart on July 31. Skillern would like to remind everyone that Fridays After Five is open to the public.

“You don’t have to be an Elks member to attend,” Skillern said. “But, it does give people a chance to see what the Elks is all about. We couldn’t be more excited to host these.”

Keep up with Fridays After Five on the First National Bank Facebook page. For questions, contact Bauer at 712-246-2205 in Shenandoah or Kyle Wilson at 641-782-3417 in Creston.