A great night in Scottville: Honoring heroes, great music, and ‘Star Wars’ under the stars.

From left: Jim Herrema, Dale Larr, Jason Williams and Scottville Police Chief Don Riley.

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An editorial by Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief.

SCOTTVILLE — I am not sure if you can get more small town USA than the last couple of Tuesday nights at the Scottville Clown Band Shell. Last night we honored our local heroes, checked out some of our county’s great emergency and safety apparatus, listened to some outstanding music by two very talented young women, and topped the evening off by watching “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” under the stars. It was a night to be proud.

I have had the honor of serving on the band shell committee for the past nine years. I don’t think we’ve ever had a better season of the shell than this year, and these family fun nights have been the icing on the cake.

This was the first year the Scottville Optimist Club presented awards for community service by our local emergency personnel. Firefighter of the Year was awarded to Scottville Fire Chief Dale Larr, Medical First Responder of the Year was awarded to Jim Herrema of Custer Fire Department and Life EMS, and Police Officer of the Year was awarded to Scottville Police Sgt. Jason Williams. These three men have a combined service of almost 90 years. Chief Larr joined the Scottville Fire Department in 1986 and has served as chief for 10 years. Jim Herrema joined the Custer Fire Department his senior year of high school in 1992, and Sgt. Williams entered law enforcement in 1990.

Scottville Optimist Club President Nancy Sanford has been a driving force in the club’s 2016 Honoring Our Heroes Awards. Back in the fall Nancy and I sat down and talked about how we could get our community more involved in the band shell season. Through the winter, the two of us, along with Angie Taylor and Tom Thomas of Mason County Central Schools brainstormed the idea of honoring our local heroes. Last week we honored local educators (see related story). Next week the club will present a Community Service Award.

I want to thank those who attended the event last night: the audience (many of whom attend every Tuesday event), performers Mallory Shinn and Emma Taranko, our wonderful master of ceremonies Danny Vargas (AKA Danny V), Ken Terryn manning the Optimist popcorn wagon, Diane and Mark Watts cooking the brats and hotdogs, Smith & Eddy Insurance and its team for sponsoring the movie and providing games and prizes for kids (especially Patty Smith, Joe Knowles and Scott Smith), the men and women of Scottville Police Department, Mason County Sheriff’s Office, Scottville Fire Department, Custer Fire Department, Grant Township Fire Department, Fountain Area Fire Department, Riverton Fire Department, Ludington Fire Department, and West Shore Educational Service District, Tom Thomas for helping with our projection equipment, and anyone else who I forgot (which I apologize).

Our band shell season is better than ever. Our purpose is not to entertain thousands but rather to provide fun, family friendly entertainment for the people who live in and around Scottville. We have an outdoor entertainment venue that is unmatched to any other in this area and we take great pride in being able to carry on the tradition that was started by members of the Scottville Optimist Club and Scottville Clown Band in 1989.

We look forward to seeing everyone next Tuesday, Aug. 2, for the West Shore Bank Safari Night, featuring live music by Jimmy Dodson, Jr., games for the kids and the movie Disney’s “Zootopia.” The fun starts at 6:30 p.m.