Check out this year’s Inside the Scioto Mile brochure — your guide to FREE Columbus Recreation and Parks’ events and activities along the Scioto Mile this summer!

Printed copies are available at the following locations:

• Bicentennial Park
• Bexley Public Library, Grandview Heights Public Library, Westerville Public Library and Upper Arlington Public Library
• Columbus Arts Festival
• Columbus City Hall
• Columbus Metropolitan Library branch locations
• Columbus Recreation and Parks Community Centers
• COSI
• Experience Columbus | Greater Columbus Convention & Visitors Bureau
• Pearl Market
• Food Truck Food Court at the Columbus Commons

…and various other central Ohio businesses!

Click HERE to download a printer-friendly PDF of the brochure.

• 15,000 square feet
• 200 feet long
• Holds 110,000 gallons of water in an underground reservoir
• Shoots jets of water 75 feet into the air from its circular center blossom
• Features five stainless-steel halo structures with 1,100 fog nozzles
• 1,079 ground-level spray nozzles make up 24 hedgerows
• Contains halos, a blossom, and a smile!

With bubbles, jets, sprinkles, mists and fogs, the fountain is designed to complement fun in the sun or a relaxing evening in the park. Offering something for all ages, it is a summer staple in downtown Columbus. Whether you bring your children to FountainSide, spend a night out with family and friends, enjoy dinner on the patio at Milestone 229, or go for a run along the mile, we hope to see you at the fountain soon!

The Artist’s process for creation can often mystify us, especially in an age when it is sometimes difficult to know “What is Art?”

At the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department’s Cultural Arts Center, you have the chance to pose these question (and many more) to different artists each week at a program we call Conversations and Coffee. Now in its thirty-third year, Conversations and Coffee is Columbus’ longest running ‘artist talk’! Each and every Thursday at noon we invite a different artist from the community to speak to a group of eager adult learners. Presenters vary from the artists featured in our current exhibits, to local celebrities, to students doing something exciting right in our studios. Presenters often bring slides or examples of their work to share. And our weekly host and organizer, Ellen O’Shaughnessy always finds a way to draw some wonderful incite out of the conversation. Here is a sample of the artists with whom we’ll be talking over the next several months:

• April 18 – Rick Boyle, Sculptor, Loft Gallery Artist
• April 25 – Spring Break / No Conversations and Coffee
• May 2 – Patrick Durkin, Custom Carpet Inlay Artist, Creator of Matisse-a Pizza
• May 10 – W.J. (Bill Meyer), Drawings and Sculpture, Loft Gallery Artist
• May 16 – C. Forrest Amidon, Artist and Book Collector, “Illustrated by N.C. Wyeth”
• May 23 – Christiane Buuck, Liturgical Artist
• May 30 – Dianne Efsic, Collage and Painting, Woman at Work
• June 6 – Susan Hodgin, Oil and Acrylic Paintings Main Gallery Artist
• June 13 – Larry Wood, Ceramics, Loft Gallery Artist
• June 20 – Tom Wagner, Collector of the Reverse Paintings of Mark Beyers
• June 27 – Darlene Yeager-Torre, Fine Art Photography

The talks are always free to attend. We even provide you with a fresh cup of coffee. You may also bring a lunch with you (we always have tables set up for those who are munching).

We promise you will always find something amazing to share with your friends and family at dinner that night or to impress your co-workers with the next day. Conversations and Coffee is your chance to get a rare glimpse inside the creative process. Join us.

Conversation and coffee begins each Thursday at noon at the Cultural Arts center. Visit us online at http://www.culturalartscenteronline.org/conversations___coffee for an updated schedule of events.

Smart phone users can download a QR Code Reader in the App Store or Android Market. When scanned, the QR Code is converted into a URL, directing the Smart phone’s browser to a website, social media page, store, or product. Since it provides quick and effortless access to a brand’s website, more and more advertisements and marketing communications are incorporating QR Codes into their messaging.

Experience Columbus is now using this technology to improve our city’s offerings for residents and tourists alike. By going to MyColumbusExperience.org through the QR Code below, consumers are met with a five question survey that helps answer the question: “How is our destination (Columbus) doing in the eyes of the consumer?” There are over 60 questions in the survey however the system delivers only five per encounter, so users are encouraged to return to the survey again and again.

Businesses and citizens across Greater Columbus are working together to make your experience the best it can be. Our citizens and visitors have the power to shape our city through this useful tool. By taking the one minute survey, you will help Columbus continue to grow into the wonderful destination it is meant to be!

Visit MyColumbusExperience.org and take the survey now!

Be on the lookout for QR Codes around the city! Download a QR Code Reader to your smart phone, scan the code and take the survey. Take the survey over and over to answer new questions each time!

Check out this video and article from The Columbus Dispatch!

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas, particularly Downtown, where thousands gathered last night to watch the city come to life — and light.

The Scioto Mile and Columbus Commons are shimmering in their holiday finery of hundreds of thousands of sparkling lights after Grand Illumination ceremonies.

Fireworks a day short of December heralded the start of the holiday season at Columbus Commons, and the sweet voices of the Columbus Children’s Choir preceded the lighting of the trees at Bicentennial Park.

Families stuffed both parks for an array of activities and music, as more than 200,000 lights blazed to life along the riverfront and 100,000-plus multicolored lights flooded the Commons.

[Read the entire article at Dispatch.com]

With the Grand Illumination only a few days away, we are anxious to announce our exciting programming for the evening!

This year, the Scioto Mile features over 200,000 holiday lights as well as dynamic seasonal imagery, creating a one-of-a-kind visual experience, projected onto the Scioto Mile Fountain each night through mid-January.

Enjoy festive activities in Bicentennial Park beginning at 5 p.m. Ceremony will follow at 6 p.m. and feature a stunning light show set to an eclectic mix of holiday music from the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, culminating with sweeping views of Santa and his reindeer as they fly across the Columbus skyline.

The evening could not take place without the help of our wonderful partners.
Here is a quick look at some of their offerings during the Grand Illumination ceremony:

• In the spirit of giving, help support the Mid-Ohio Foodbank by purchasing a piece of handcrafted pottery, created for the Empty Bowls project, and receive a bowl of gourmet mac ‘n’ cheese compliments of Milestone 229.
• Attendees arriving between 4–6 p.m. can enjoy complimentary parking at COSI (Print your FREE parking voucher here). Immediately following the Ceremony, enjoy 50% off admission – $5 per person – to COSI’s Family Friday Night from 7–9 p.m. Ceremony attendees can pick up discounted tickets and free spectrum glasses at the COSI booth in Bicentennial Park.
• Children can visit The Franklin Park Conservatory booth to make their own edible Christmas tree, while the Conservatory will hand out admission coupons as well.
• Hockey fans can meet Stinger, the Columbus Blue Jackets mascot, as well as stop by their booth to play “Plinko” for prizes.
• During the ceremony, visitors can enjoy traditional carols performed by the Columbus Children’s Choir.
• BalletMet Columbus’ very own Nutcracker and Clara will be on site to say, “Happy Holidays!”
• Ski season is upon us which means Mad River Mountain will open for skiers soon! Stop by their booth to pick up free giveaways, ski literature and discount coupons.

Make sure to enter our drawing and win one of these great prizes:

• Franklin Park Conservatory Family Pack (a $34 value!)
• Columbus Blue Jackets team-signed hockey stick
• Tickets to CAPA events
• Columbus Blue Jackets signed throw-back jersey

EVENING SCHEDULE:
5:00 p.m. – Holiday Activities
6:00 p.m. – Ceremony / Light Show
The lights twinkle along the Scioto Mile until mid-January!

LOCATION:
Bicentennial Park
233 Civic Center Drive
Columbus, OH 43215

ADMISSION IS FREE!

Mayor Michael B. Coleman invites the public to celebrate the City’s newest holiday tradition, the Grand Illumination, on Friday, November 30. New this year, the Scioto Mile features over 200,000 holiday lights as well as dynamic seasonal imagery projected onto the Scioto Mile Fountain, creating a one-of-a-kind visual experience, projected onto the Scioto Mile Fountain each night through mid-January.

This year’s ceremony will also feature a stunning light show set to an eclectic mix of holiday music from the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, culminating with sweeping views of Santa and his reindeer as they fly across the Columbus night sky. During the ceremony, visitors can enjoy traditional carols performed by the Columbus Children’s Choir, BalletMet Columbus’ Nutcracker and Clara, and a special appearance from Santa Claus!

In the spirit of giving, attendees of the Grand Illumination can also show their support for the Empty Bowls project by purchasing a piece of handcrafted pottery and receive a bowl of signature mac ‘n’ cheese, compliments of Milestone 229 restaurant. All proceeds from the Empty Bowls project will benefit the Mid-Ohio Foodbank.

Be sure to visit our website regularly as we reveal the exciting programming in store for the ceremony!
This event is free to the public. Convenient parking available at COSI.

CEREMONY:
Friday, November 30
Activities begin at 5:00PM
Ceremony begins at 6:00PM

LIGHTING DATES:
November 30, 2012 – Mid-January 2013; Nightly

LOCATION:
Bicentennial Park, 233 Civic Center Drive, Columbus, OH 43215
Admission is free.

Also, check out photos from this event below… Click on the thumbnails to enlarge!

Experience the international music phenomenon Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars in a FREE live performance in Bicentennial Park on Friday, September 7 at 8 p.m. The band is a potent example of the redeeming power of music and the ability of the human spirit to persevere through unimaginable hardship and emerge with optimism intact. From their humble beginnings in West African refugee camps, Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars have performed on some of the world’s most prestigious stages and matured into one of Africa’s top touring and recording bands. The group draws influences from reggae, funky African grooves and deep tribal chants.

Formed in a refugee camp while displaced by civil war in Sierra Leon during the 1990s, their incredible story is documented in the award winning, compelling and emotionally driven film, Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars. Initial support for the film came from executive producers Steve Bing and Shelley Lazar as well as high profile celebrities Keith Richards, Paul McCartney, and Angelina Jolie.

TRAILER FOR THE 2005 DOCUMENTARY

(The entire film can be purchased on iTunes for $4.99 | Click HEREfor more info)

The resulting studio album, Living Like A Refugee (Anti Records 2006), is one of the most acclaimed world music releases in recent years, garnering the band international acclaim and high profile fans including Aerosmith, who the All Stars collaborated with on the certified Gold Record, Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur.

ARTIST WEBSITES:
www.sierraleonesrefugeeallstars.com

EVENING SCHEDULE:
6:30 p.m. – Food and beverage sales begin
8:00 p.m. – FREE Outdoor Concert

Check out more great videos from this exciting group:

THANK YOU TO OUR PROGRAM SPONSORS: