With beautiful weather and a beautiful spirit uniting the crowd, the 20th annual QC Festival of Praise was a huge success. Sunday evening’s concert in Davenport’s LeClaire Park, featuring Brandon Shupp, the Heritage Worship Team, and headliner Rend Collective, drew thousands to the park for a night of music and worship. “We were really happy with it!” said Babette Howard, promotions and marketing director for the event. “I went around the crowd and people seemed to really be enjoying themselves. The night included events for children, bounce houses, food and a salute to all Quad-Cities... Read More

The Q-C Festival of Praise has survived and thrived for 20 years over a succession of names and changes and this weekend it will bloom in Davenport’s LeClaire Park with a huge concert featuring the hugely popular Christian pop act Rend Collective. The show, which begins at 7 p.m. (gates open at 5 p.m.), also features Brandon Shupp and the Heritage Worship Team. Tickets are available before the show for $20 at all Chick Fil A shops in the Quad-Cities and are on sale for $25 at the door. “We’re excited!” said Babette Howard, promotions and marketing manager for the festival. “We actually... Read More

The succulent scent of barbeque and the scintillating sound of roots rock has proven a potent lure to LeClaire Park for the past nine years as the two-headed beast of River Roots Live and Ribfest rocks the riverfront, and this weekend it’s once more expected to draw thousands in for stick-to-your-ribs eats and stick-to-your-ears tunes. The dual festival, which has showcased a wide menu of barbecued treats and other delicious delicacies served up hot with a diverse array of rock and Americana acts since 2007, rolls from 4 to midnight Friday and continues Saturday from noon to midnight. Proceeds... Read More

In one of the night cap games for day two of the thirteen year old Ottumwa Babe Ruth World Series, Pearl City(HI) took on Davenport(IA). Pearl City jumped out early and cruised to a five inning 11-0 win over Davenport. Things were all Pearl City’s way in the first. Jayton Pang started with a double, Kelena Sauer then singled. But it was a wild pitch that brought in the first run. Next up Michael Yamaguchi singled followed by Bryden “Maka” Malama with a sacrifice fly to score Sauer. Jaron Yoshikane got in on the scoring next with a RBI single bringing in Yamaguchi, Pearl City went up 3-0. Two... Read More

Gotta catch ‘em all, gotta drink . . . some of ‘em, or you’re going to be chucking up your Pikachu. Pokemon Go has brought out people by the thousands trying to catch wild Pokemon, to the point where some people (who shall remain unnamed) have turned it into a drinking game, and now, some other people (who are about to be named) are going to turn it into a pub crawl. The first annual Q-C Pokemon Go pub crawl, sponsored by Scum City Clothing Co., is taking place from 9 p.m. to midnight Saturday beginning at LeClaire Park in Davenport and rolling through the local taverns downtown. According... Read More

With one-of-a-kind memorabilia and content from the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y. and a cool interactive component and feel, the Hall of Fame Tour at Modern Woodmen Park hit a home run with me and my son when we went to see it this week. The exhibit is open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday in the parking lot adjacent to Modern Woodmen Park. Tickets are $29 for adults, $25 for 60-over and military, $20 for students 11-over and $13 for kids 4-10. Sean Leary and his son Jackson enjoyed checking out the Hall of Fame exhibit in Davenport. When... Read More

Drenched by rain and pushed around by the rising river, organizers of the Mississippi Valley Blues Fest have had ample reason to sing down-on-their-luck dirges over the past few years, even having to cancel last year’s event, but festival organizers are singing a happy tune going into the 31st annual fest this weekend. (For more info, see their site at http://mvbs.org/fest/.) “We feel good and optimistic about this year’s Festival,” said Stan Furlong, a member of the Mississippi Valley Blues Society and an organizer of the event. “The river is about six feet below the sidewalk in LeClaire... Read More

The car chases. The witty banter between Burt Reynolds and Sally Field. The redneck hijinks of Jackie Gleason and his bumbling array of cops hot in pursuit. If you smiled at the mention of any of those things, you’re probably a fan of the 1977 film “Smokey and the Bandit,” and if you are, you’ll want to check out the BanditRun, coming to town Thursday to LeClaire, Iowa, and Friday and Saturday, to Davenport. Around 100 replica Trans Ams, semis and the police cars from the movie have been traveling across the country since May 27, rolling through Sandusky and Dayton, Ohio, Nashville, Indiana... Read More

It’s St. Patrick’s Day, and we’re hoping you’re getting your Irish on today and throughout this week as festivities o’ the green have been rolling last weekend through this coming weekend. However, that’s no surprise, and that pot of gold of events at the Quad-Cities end of the rainbow has been noticed on a national level. This week, SafeCo Insurance and HomeInsurance.com analytics released a list of the the top 15 U.S. cities with the highest percentages of Irish descendants to join in their St. Patrick’s Day parades – and the Quad-Cities comes in at number 14. Number one? Butte-Silver... Read More