Every year, Rock for Life Concert Series Inc. puts on shows at the Iselin Ballfield near Saltsburg, PA. These shows are charity, benefiting sponsored children and their families through tough times with medical expenses and also moral support. It’s way more than a fundraising event. Gigaroo and the main event, Rock For Life are two day events with free camping. These shows go on rain or shine and are staffed by some of the most committed volunteers I have ever seen and had the pleasure of working with. Same for the musicians who donate their time and perform. This year is Rock For Life’s 20th anniversary. At the head of this effort is Rock For Life founder Matt Ferrante. Tirelessly, he, his wife Summre and everyone involved have faced challenges and put on shows such as these for 20 years. Strobe Lighting provided outstanding lighting for the entire weekend and Fat Lipp Sound just plain kicked ass.
Friday, Suffacate kicked off the music at 6pm with their acoustic set. Cate Fouse and Matt Wilmot are Rock For Life veterans of so many shows. Next up was Oceans to Ash, Divine Tragedy and guests from Indiana, Losing September. Their set was phenomenal and I recommend catching a show if they happen to play one near you. RFL veterans Homicide Black rocked the stage and the night was capped off by old friends Five-2-One.
Saturday, JL Cook and Jeff Towers opened the music at 3pm with an acoustic set as is tradition. Iron Sight went on at 4pm and ended up being the last band that played. Severe storms pummeled the show and surrounding areas with driving rain, prodigious lightning and strong winds. These storms ended up causing widespread power outages all over Western PA. This was the first Rock For Life show that did not finish due to weather and given the extreme nature of the storms, it can be expected. Power was restored well after midnight.
Storms will pass through life. At any Rock For Life event, we dance through the raindrops. It’s more than just a local music festival. It’s the music, it’s our musician friends, it’s the Rock For Life family that makes these events. Strobe Lighting provided some battery lighting for the stage, musicians gathered o n it and began a few hours of acoustic music with a few guitars and a lot of heart. A fairly large crowd of show attendees who weathered the storm and the power outage gathered to hear them play and sang along with them.
Next up is Rock for Life 20, August 2 & 3. Join us at Iselin for some of the best local music.
Written by Guest Author, John Klazon
Images and Exclusive Media Coverage by Reina Peli
