The first-ever article about One Lucky Guitar, which probably remains the best-ever article about OLG, was written by Kelly Lynch, for IPFW’s Communicator newspaper. In one page, Kelly captured something—values, audacity, spirit—that was wild & bold and mostly true, and the article inspired me to work my ass off to make it completely true. The article is eight or nine years gone by at this point, and yet each day still starts with the rolling up of our sleeves and the hard fight to hit that bar.
A couple months ago I was part of a dozen or so people invited on a river cruise by the Regional Partnership and Fort Wayne Outfitters. Ostensibly, the cruise was to show Fort Wayne’s three rivers in their best light, so that we might all imagine their possibilities, but the weather did not cooperate. It was a cold, wet, dank and rainy evening. We cruised anyway. At a certain point, our navigator—let’s call him Citizen River—pointed the vessel toward a makeshift dock and said we had someone to pick up. Through the fog, I saw a guy striding right out of an Edgar Allan Poe story and toward our boat, like a castaway or a convict. I thought, “Who would be out here on a night like this!?” Sure enough, it was Kelly Lynch, camera in hand, telling stories, cracking wise and making cinematic magic on a cinematic night on a cinematic riverfront that’s finally ready to take on its leading role.
Kelly and his collaborators are behind an idea for downtown Fort Wayne called Headwaters Junction. If you haven’t heard about it, check out the site at headwatersjunction.com. And better yet, come hear Kelly pitch it in-person at CitySquared at Founders on Thursday night at 6PM.
This idea? Well it’s wild & bold, just the way we like it.
– Matt Kelley
