HEART CITY HEALTH’S HEART BEAT OF THE CITY 2024
Now, in 2024 – for the Heart Beat of the City No. 4, we’re bringing the show to The Lerner Theatre on Saturday, October 5. Join us for 5 stars from 5 of Classic Rock’s Biggest Bands with Voices of Rock Radio! Don’t miss out on our show opener, who was featured in the 2024 Elkhart Jazz Festival, Phillip-Michael Scales!
When the pandemic of 2020 began to loosen its grip, after all the music festivals had been canceled, Heart City Health was the first to bring live music back to our community. Through the Heart Beat of the City concert, Heart City Health delivered the healing power of music to a community known for its musical roots. The festival was repeated in 2021.
As life had gotten back to a new normal, Heart City Health shifted to a private event in the fall of 2023 also honoring the 30th Anniversary of Heart City Health. The show featured the iconic band Blues Traveler with the support of several local businesses. And we thank them.
WHY? With only 10% of its budget coming from Federal funding, Heart City Health relies on fees for service to operate. As the organization vows to help everyone get quality healthcare, private donations are essential in caring for the most vulnerable in our community. Heart Beat is an event providing local sponsors to show support. (CLICK HERE FOR SPONSORSHIP INFORMATION.)
Join us for the concert this year! Check out who will be performing:
Opening the evening … As a kid, Phillip-Michael Scales didn’t understand what it meant that his aunt’s close friend, the guitar player who called him “Nephew” and he called “Uncle B,” was B.B. King. Once Phillip-Michael began guitar lessons, the significance became so clear that he shied away from soloing and most things blues. Instead, he fell in love with songwriting when an English teacher told him “A great writer can make their reader identify with anyone.” The trouble was he couldn’t find his story in the blues. With a fierce independent streak and a passion for performing, Scales fronted his own indie bands, wrote and recorded his own music, and worked to make a name for himself on his own terms. Come see what this man does on October 5 at The Lerner.
John Elefante is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. During the early 1980s, he was lead vocalist of the rock group Kansas. In 1984, on the retrospective collection The Best of Kansas, he wrote the album’s one new track, “Perfect Lover”. John and his brother Dino were producers for the band Petra. They also owned Nashville recording studio Sound Kitchen, where recorded artists such as Bruce Springsteen, Faith Hill and Tim McGraw, and Buddy Guy.
Randall Hall toured with Lynyrd Skynyrd from 1988 to 1994. Hand-picked as his replacement on the famed “Tribute” Tour by the late Allen Collins, Randall brought fire to the stages of the world, and appeared on three Skynyrd albums, according to writer Michael Buffalo Smith. He toured with folk rocker Melanie, was inspired by Jimi Hendrix, and soloed alongside Stevie Ray Vaughan.
Fran Cosmo is an American musician best known as a former lead singer of the rock bands Boston and Orion the Hunter. In 1994, Cosmo was featured as the sole lead vocalist on the platinum Boston album Walk On, which reached #7 on the Billboard Charts and produced three hit singles, including “I Need Your Love”, which climbed to #4 on the Mainstream Rock Chart, and “Walk On” that peaked at #7 on the charts, and lasted for sixteen weeks.
Charlie Huhn began performing in rock bands in 1967, initially with Cirrus, in Grand Rapids until he landed a spot in Ted Nugent’s band in 1978. After touring and recording with Nugent for several years, he found a role in the classic rock band Humble Pie with original band member Jerry Shirley. For the last 20 years, Charlie has been the lead vocalist for another class rock band, Foghat.
Kevin Chalfant obtained a BMI award for co-writing and singing on one of the most aired rock radio hits of 1992 and 1993, “I’ve Got a Lot to Learn About Love”, by The Storm. In 1993 he stepped in for Steve Perry in Journey and soon was asked to join the band. Kevin also toured as the lead singer for the Alan Parsons Live Project. In 2016, Chalfant appeared at the three-day Rockingham 2016 melodic/hard rock festival held in Nottingham, England.
VIP After Party for sponsors and band members and key supporters of Heart City Health will feature the bluesy rock and pop sounds of Colleen Orender from Franklin, Tennessee. Orender will turn our Elkhart VIP location into a smoldering 1930’s Mississippi juke joint. She teamed up with Michael Davey in Nashville to produce her new sound that many are comparing to Amy Winehouse with Julie London’s essence. We see a new genre stand on its own, the Sophisticated Pop of the decade.
What is Heart City Health?
Heart Beat of the City benefits the people of Elkhart, and surrounding communities by raising awareness for Heart City Health, which offers medical services to people regardless of age, race, gender or income. Heart City Health has two general practice locations, a pediatrics office, behavioral health center, dental practice, and women’s health. No one gets turned away.
With this event, Heart City Health delivers the healing power of live music!
Would you go out in public if most of the people you’d run into were contagiously ill?
Only 10% of Heart City Health’s annual budget comes from federal funding. The remaining 90% is generated through our affordable services. In 2022, we served over 16,000 individuals, and in 2023, we’ve helped even more. However, the need is rapidly outpacing our capacity. Sadly, more than 20,000 others still need our help.
We need your support—support that benefits your neighbors, your businesses, and your community. Currently, only 1% of our budget comes from donations. To sustain and expand our services over the next five years, we need your help to build the necessary infrastructure and facilities. As the only healthcare organization in our area dedicated to serving the underinsured and uninsured, we cannot afford to neglect the working families in our community.
