St. Joseph County Parks


Bendix Woods | Ferrettie/Baugo Creek | Place Trail Marsh | LaSalle Trail
Spicer Lake | St. Patrick's | Anderson Road | Chamberlain Lake
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Calendar of Events
July | August | September


July


  • 2             Thursday
  • Summer Stroller Walk
  • St. Patrick’s County Park: Brown Barn
  • 10 to 11:30am
  • Fee: $3/child

Bring your baby or toddler (up to three years old) in a stroller or baby carrier to see, hear, touch and smell the natural world. The program will include songs, stories, snacks and a guided walk. Registration is required by June 30. (Min. 5/max. 10)


  • 7             Tuesday
  • Creepy Crawlies
  • St. Joseph County Fairgrounds
  • 4 to 9pm

Kids, stop by the nature center at the fairgrounds and join a park interpreter from the St. Joseph County Parks to discover the creepy crawlies that are unloved by many! Enjoy an informative exhibit and hands-on activities.



  • 9             Thursday
  • Fly Fishing Lesson
  • St. Patrick’s County Park: Brown Barn
  • 6:30 to 8:30pm
  • Fee: $5/person
  • Ages 8 & up, 13 and under accompanied by an adult
Fly Fishing Lesson

Join the St. Joseph River Valley Fly Fishers for fly tying and casting lessons. Equipment provided. Get hands-on experience casting on the St. Joseph River. This is the perfect activity for beginners to get involved in a great outdoor sport! Registration and payment are required by July 6. (Min. 4; max. 20)



  • 11           Saturday
  • Disc Golf Lesson
  • Ferrettie/Baugo Creek County Park: Pro Shop
  • 10am to noon
  • Fee: $2/person
  • Ages 8 & up, accompanied by an adult
Disc Golf Lesson

Attend a disc golf lesson! Learn how to putt and perform several throwing techniques. Come learn how to play this popular summer sport! Registration and payment are required by July 8. (Min. 4; max. 8)


  • 12           Sunday
  • Breath Walk
  • Bendix Woods County Park: Nature Center
  • 10 to 11:30am
  • Gate fee in effect
  • Ages 12 & up, accompanied by adult

Join a certified yoga instructor for a relaxing stretch routine before heading out on a meditative walk on park trails. Participants will learn how to use breathing techniques to aid in relaxation while walking. Insect repellant is encouraged. Registration is required by July 8. (Min. 3; max. 25)



  • 16           Thursday
  • Geocaching: The Great GPS Stash Hunt
  • St. Patrick’s County Park: White Barn Harvest Room
  • GPS coordinates: N 41° 45.473’, W 086° 16.055’
  • 6 to 9pm
  • Fee: $2/person
Geocaching

Learn how to use a Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) device on a high-tech “treasure hunt” to find caches at the park and throughout the world! Bring a GPS unit if possible; limited loaner units are available. Check out www.geocaching.com to find out more about this fun and exciting international sport. A special geocache course will be set up just for this event! Registration and payment are required by July 14. (Min. 4; max. 15)


  • 25           Saturday
  • Women Experience the Outdoors: Relaxation Retreat
  • Bendix Woods County Park: Nature Center
  • 10am to noon
  • Fee: $10/person

Join a certified yoga instructor to make two aromatherapy tools that you will then use in a quiet relaxation session. Wear comfortable clothing. No experience with yoga is necessary. Registration and payment are required by July 22. (Min. 4; max. 15)


  • 30           Thursday
  • Amish Acres Arts and Crafts Festival
  • Depart: 9am (St. Patrick’s County Park: Red Barn Parking Lot)
  • Return: 4pm (approximately)
  • Fee: $14/person

Join us as we travel to Amish Acres in Nappanee, IN to attend the annual Arts and Crafts Festival. Live entertainment, square dancing, 350 artists and crafters and yummy festival foods are sure to entice you! Festival admission fee, morning snack and transportation are included in program fee. Purchase lunch at the festival. Registration and payment are required by July 27. (Min. 8; max. 26)


  • 31           Friday
  • Pete Best
    The Best of the Beatles Concert
  • St. Patrick’s County Park: Robert J. Fischgrund Amphitheater
  • Time: Gates open at 6:00pm concert starts at 8:00pm
  • Tickets: $38.00, $50.50, $73.00, Kids under 12 free with paid adult ticket.
  • Parking: A $2.00 parking fee will be added to all tickets purchased.
    Other charges may be applicable.
  • Tickets now on sale at the Morris, www.morriscenter.org
Pete Best, Best of the Beatles 

Pete Best, together with John Lennon, George Harrison, Paul McCartney and Stuart Sutcliff created the sound and frenzy that we now know as Beatlemania. The Beatles played over 1,000 shows in Liverpool, Hamburg and throughout England before the untimely death of Stu Sutcliff and the replacement of Pete Best by Ringo Starr, on the eve of the release of The Beatles first single “Love Me Do.”

Experience those early years at the Casbah Club, where Pete became a Beatle, and travel through time - through the British Invasion, the Abby Road sessions, the Ed Sullivan Show  and the hysteria at Shea Stadium, in  a multi-media extravaganza.

This show presents the complete story in two sets, on a stage, wrapped in high tech video screens. These screens place the performers within their historic environments: The Casbah Coffee Club,  Pete Best’s basement, recreating The Decca Recording Sessions,  The Cavern, The EMI Abby Road Sessions, Ed Sullivan,  Carnegie Hall,  Shea Stadium, Psychedellia and The ‘Let It Be’ Rooftop Concert....................Click here for the full press release.

For more information, visit www.morriscenter.org.


 August


  • 1           Saturday
  • The Ultimate DOO-WOP Show
  • St. Patrick’s County Park: Robert J. Fischgrund Amphitheater
  • Time: Gates open at 6:00pm Concert starts at 8:00pm
  • Tickets: $43.00, $55.50, $73.00 , Kids under 12 free with paid adult ticket.
  • Parking: A $2.00 parking fee will be added to all tickets purchased.
    Other charges may be applicable.
  • Tickets now on sale at the Morris, www.morriscenter.org
The Ultimate Doo-Wop Show

For more information, visit www.morriscenter.org.


  • 8             Saturday
  • Make a Solar Cooker
  • St. Patrick’s County Park: White Barn Harvest Room
  • 10am to 1pm
  • Fee: $7
  • Ages 12 & up, accompanied by an adult

Learn how to make a solar cooker. If weather allows, make a yummy snack! Recipes will be provided. Registration and payment are required by August 5. (Min. 4; max. 10)


  • 8             Saturday
  • Summer Shakespeare in the Park: The Deceived
  • St. Patrick’s County Park: Hurwich Shelter
  • 7pm

Celebrate the Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival’s 10th season with a free outdoor performance by the NDSF Young Company. Laughter, intrigue, and a huge helping of mistaken identity come together in The Deceived – the Renaissance farce that inspired Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night.


  • 15           Saturday
  • The Beach Boys in Concert with special guest Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
  • St. Patrick’s County Park: Robert J. Fischgrund Amphitheater
  • Time: Gates open at 5:30pm Concert starts at 7:00pm
  • Fee: $57.50 VIP, 47.50 General Admission, Kids under 12 free with paid adult ticket.
  • Parking: A $2.00 parking fee will be added to all tickets purchased.
    Other charges may be applicable.
  • Tickets now sale at the Morris Box Office or online at www.morriscenter.org or www.ticketmaster.com.
Beach Boys with Joan Jett

Fun, fun, fun for everybody! Come on out and hear the ultimate sound of summer. Legendary California rock band and Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame members THE BEACH BOYS return to South Bend, with very special guests JOAN JETT & THE BLACKHEARTS, for a Saturday August 15 concert at Saint Patrick's Park. The concert will feature a vintage car display near the main entrance to the amphitheatre, including classic Studebaker and Avanti vehicles which were manufactured in South Bend until 1963. Festive summer foods will be offered for sale, and a fireworks display will follow The Beach Boys show. For ticket information call 574/235-5617 or visit www.morriscenter.org.



  • 16           Sunday
  • Big 10 Rock Fest Celebrating ten years with Tommy Carroll
  • St. Patrick’s County Park: Fischgrund Amphitheater for the Performing Arts
  • Time: 5:30pm- 10pm
  • Tickets: $21 in advance, $33 day of show, kids under 5 free with paid adult ticket.
  • Parking: A $2.00 parking fee will be added to all tickets purchased.
    Other charges may be applicable.
Big 10 Rock Fest

Artist Line Up: Tantric, Cavo, Framing Hanley & Smile Empty Soul. Tickets now on sale. TANTRIC, post-grunge band from Louisville, Kentucky, has released three studio albums since 2001. Their original self-titled debut album “Tantric” went platinum. TANTRIC is currently recording their newest album to be entitled “Mind Control” with a tentative release date of August 4. FRAMING HANLEY, alternative rock/post-grunge band from Nashville, released their first studio album “The Moment” featuring hit singles “Hear Me Now” and “Lollipop.” SMILE EMPTY SOUL, released their self-titled debut album “Smile Empty Soul” in May 2003. The certified gold album include the singles “Bottom of a Bottle,” “Silhouettes” and “Nowhere Kids.”
For ticket information call 574/235-5617 or visit www.morriscenter.org.



  • 22           Saturday
  • run, jane, run: 5/10K Run and Walk
  • St. Patrick’s County Park
  • 7 to 8am—Registration at the Red Barn
  • 8am—5K/10K Trail Run starts
  • Awards immediately following the race
run, jane, run

Women of all ages! Rev up those running shoes for run, jane, run. This event benefits the YWCA of St. Joseph County. Choose between the 5K and 10K trail run or the 5K walk. For information or to register by phone call the YWCA at 574/233-9491 X 324, or register on-line at www.ywcasjc.org.


  • 23           Sunday
  • run, jane, run: 20-, 40- and 60-mile Bike Ride
  • Bendix Woods County Park
  • 7:30 to 10am—Registration at the Van Paris Shelter
  • 8 to 10am—Begin ride

Women of all ages! Pump up those bike tires for run, jane, run. This event benefits the YWCA of St. Joseph County. Choose between the 20-, 40- and 60-mile ride. For information or to register by phone, call the YWCA at 574/233-9491 X 324, or register on-line at www.ywcasjc.org.


September


  • 5 & 6       Saturday & Sunday
  • Pow Wow at St. Patrick’s County Park
  • St. Patrick’s County Park
  • 10am to 8pm
  • Fee: TBA, parking fee included in ticket price

Bring your lawn chairs and enjoy the Annual Pow Wow. The Native Peoples of North America will host several tribes that display authentic regalia, customs, ceremonies, drumming and dance contests. Vendors will offer Native American food, jewelry, beadwork, leatherwork and other cultural crafts. For more information call 231/271-6661.



  • 12           Saturday
  • Volunteer Water Monitor Training
  • St. Patrick’s County Park: Brown Barn
  • 8:30am to 4:30pm
Water Monitor Training

Attend this Hoosier Riverwatch Training and become a certified volunteer monitor! This training introduces participants to habitat, chemical, and biological assessment methods. Learn to use of chemical monitoring kits and aquatic insect collection and identification. Bring a sack lunch. The training is free; materials and class size are limited. Registration is required by September 2. (Min. 4; max. 12)