the metro | Labor Day weekend is a time to relax, barbecue and walk, run, or roll for those in need. Northside Trap Run is the StL’s first and only hip-hop 5K and festival. With more than a dozen D.Js, this event, hosted by Northside Community Housing Inc., offers great music to celebrate the important roles that strong communities, families and good health play in North City. Established in 2018, the run and festival were designed to empower neighborhoods to unify the grassroots, civic, educational, commercial and residential efforts aimed toward bridging our city’s north-south divide. The run kicks off on Sept. 6 at 8 a.m., and the festival winds up at 2 p.m. This is especially important in the wake of the May 16 tornado that devastated North City neighborhoods. The storm, its aftermath and the people-powered recovery only strengthened organizers’ resolve to make this year’s Trap Run the biggest and best so far. Meanwhile, on Sept. 6 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., the St. Louis Ataxia Support Group is having its second annual Walk N’Roll to Cure Ataxia in Kirkwood Park’s Campbell Pavilion. Ataxia is a little-known neurological disorder in which the cerebellum deteriorates, affecting balance, speech, swallowing and more. There is no cure or tried-and-true treatment for ataxia, which can prove fatal. In spite of the dire nature of the disorder, this is a fun, family-friendly event with door prizes, raffles, music and much more. The Walk N’Roll offers a walk in the park for anyone, whether walking independently or using canes, walkers, wheelchairs or pushing strollers. St. Louis Help will be on site for medical equipment recycling. The nonprofit refurbishes crutches, wheelchairs and other devices for loan to anyone who may need them.
ladue
Lucky Diaz, a Grammy Award-winning musician and children’s book author, will perform Aug. 8 at 6 p.m. at our county library’s Clark Family Branch with his Family Jam Band, fronted by Diaz and his wife, Alisha Gaddis. The free special concert and story time will include a reading of his new picture book, Fix-It Familia. Diaz is a bilingual, songwriting, multi–Latin Grammy Award–winning and six-time Emmy–nominated musician, children’s TV personality and author. As a first generation Mexican-American, he is honored to be a representative for diversity and inclusion in children’s media. His new book is a rollicking and rhyming story about a boy and his family who have all the right tools to help their community. Diaz’ work has been called “the ultimate crossover between music, storytelling and cultural magic,” and also has garnered praise from NPR, Billboard magazine, People magazine and The New York Times. In 2020, his album Buenos Diaz was named an official selection of notable works for children by the American Library Association. Diaz’ debut picture book, Paletero Man, has received plaudits including starred reviews by Kirkus Reviews and Publisher’s Weekly, which are pre-publication honors awarded only to books of exceptional merit.
the delmar loop
Avoid extreme heat for the remainder of the summer by diving into the Delmar Loop’s events—some are inside and the rest are early in the evening, by which time the sun will have ceased to directly scorch. Over in the U. City portion of the Loop, the tastefully renovated Duck Room concert space at Blueberry Hill welcomes magician and comic Magic Amanda on Aug. 9 at 7 p.m. for “Mind Blown: A Night of Magic & Comedy,” with a portion of the proceeds to benefit a local animal-care charity. Later in the month, check out the Duck Room for the album-release party and show by Daemon Euphonic, who rock out on Aug. 15. On Aug. 17, Moony & Boy Bandicoot play the venue, followed by Love, Sex & The IRS with shows on four nights, Aug. 21-24. All summer, trivia nerds can test their skills on Tuesday nights in the Dart Room. On Wednesdays, the Dart Room welcomes the Summer Dart League. Details are on the event page at blueberryhill.com. Meanwhile, east of Skinker, the rooftop garden atop the Moonrise Hotel is all set for
late-summer lunar lunacy. Enjoy sultry nights with uniquely spacey drink concoctions under the world’s largest man-made revolving moon. You might need to wind down up there after a jaunt into Forest Park with a gourmet picnic prepared by the chefs at the Moonrise. They’ll pack your tasty selections into a backpack picnic tote so you’ll be all set to hop the trolley into the park. To wrap things up for the month at the Moonrise, the Dinner & a Movie series brings back the 1985 chestnut Back to the Future on Aug. 25 and 28. Half the proceeds will benefit the Michael J. Fox Foundation. If they aren’t already, tickets will be available soon on EventBrite. For details, glide on over to moonrisehotel.com.
notable neighbors
brentwood
The first woodworking project that young artisan Hunter Chesnutt-Perry completed using wood and epoxy, a charcuterie board, occupies a place of honor: an alcove in his mother’s kitchen. It’s imperfect, he observes, ruefully. “All I see are the mistakes, which is what artists do,” he says. Did we mention that he’s young? Chesnutt-Perry is all of 22, and there’s more sawdust in his Lindenwood Park studio today than your dad had to sweep and vacuum up in his workshop for his entire life. Indigo Custom Designs is the business he’s built from scratch, and bespoke furniture is his business, and his passion. Creating one-of-a-kind pieces for someone’s home, whether a headboard, end tables, coffee table, an occasional kitchen table or chair, the Clayton High and University of Colorado architecture grad will visit a home, whether completed or still under construction or in design, and create an inspired piece or pieces based on an aesthetic shared with the homeowner. He’s presently working with someone who’s commissioned him to design and build furniture in the home he’s building. No small order, but Chesnutt-Perry dreams big. “You need to be in the space,” he emphasizes. “Bespoke Furniture for Inspired Living” is his company tagline, and the budding designer has been inspired for years to one day build his own home. He has time, the creativity and the boundless energy of a serious artist. “I’ll work a 12-hour day and be sorry the day is over!” he exclaims. And no day is over until a piece is sanded to be smooth as marble wherever it needs to be—so, sometimes it might take a couple days. But sanding may be his zone for zen: Along with his face mask and other protective gear, he’s plugged into the world as much as he wants or needs to be, listening to classical music, jazz or podcasts. And in his ‘down’ time, he watches all the YouTube videos that any fulltime woodworker would need to stay ahead of the curve, whether he needs to fashion curves into a piece, create something that must be precisely straight or mix it up. And this is where he excels. He sculpts with wood and epoxy, with one of his repeating themes being eucalyptus burl on the edges of velvety black epoxy, whether a not-so-simple charcuterie board (one has a smooth finger hole through the handle) or the elaborately frank ‘Manhattan Table,’ where, to borrow prose from his website, “the tabletop is composed of two expertly cast epoxy layers: a smoky black foundation that creates depth and drama, and a clear top layer that reveals and elevates the raw live edge of eucalyptus burl, suspended like islands in still water.” The table is a recent project for Manhattanites, and the website a delight to peruse, like an elegant coffee-table book dedicated to heirloom furniture with an unmistakable ‘It’ factor. We must point out that, although preternaturally gifted, Hunter Chesnutt-Perry is humble enough to give credit where it is due: “I let nature lead the way. Nature is the greatest designer.” Challenge your expectations—visit indigocustomdesigns.com.