The City of Lake Charles, Louisiana

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Downtown at Sundown continues its 14^th season with the sounds of Chris Ardoin and NuStep on Friday, May 25. Chris Ardoin was born and raised in Lake Charles where he started playing the accordion at age four along side his legendary father, Lawrence Ardoin, and his brother Sean. By the age of nine he had already played Carnegie Hall inNew York, and by fourteen he had performed for over half a million people at the Monument in Washington D.C.Chris formed his own band, "Double Clutchin'",and later, "Nustep" with 5 albums to their credit. He blends the traditional Creole music with R&B, rock, jazz, blues, country, and gospel. Chris Ardoinand NuStep have brought zydeco music, Creole culture, & southern soul music to millions of people, not just in the crawfish circuit, but also in 50 states and five continents.

The music series is presented by the City of Lake Charles and offers free concerts to the public thanks to the philanthropic support of The American Press, CITGO, Delta Downs Racetrack Casino & Hotel and Entergy. Designed to draw visitors and residents to the downtown area, the event will take place in the street within the 600 block of Ryan from 6-9 p.m. with food and beverage booths, table top galleries, and activities for kids. The series continues June 1 with Soul Vacation and June 8, City Heat.

Beverage sales will be facilitated by B.A.A.K. of Southwest Louisiana (Benefiting Area At-risk Kids) and will benefit the Harbour House. Harbour House ETC provides intervention and prevention services which address the issues affecting youth and families who are in at risk situations.

"Since we've opened, Harbor House has served almost 7,000 admissions," said Dunn.
It is one of ten programs belonging to the Educational and Treatment Council, Inc. (ETC). The ETC is a private, not for profit social service agency providing intervention and prevention services which address the issues affecting youth and families who are in at risk situations. They are funded, according to Dunn, "through a variety of local money - parish money - as well as some state contracts and federal grants." Their major fundraiser for Harbor House, 'Jokes, Jazz, and Just Desserts', will be held in September at L'Auberge Hotel and Casino in Lake Charles.

The five parish Southwest Louisiana area is their main area of focus. Eighty-five percent of admits to Harbor House come from Calcasieu parish while 15 percent come from outlying parishes and from out of state, although the out of state numbers are very small.

Quite a large number of the children admitted will have substance abuse issues, be one or more grades behind where they should be in school, have some kind of mental health issue, have a history of runaway behavior, suffer from some form of child abuse or neglect, or be a repeat admit. Seventy percent, according to Dunn, will have come from the juvenile justice or foster care system. For these children, Harbor House offers 24 hour supervision by trained youth care workers, individual case management by Bachelor degree level case managers, individualized and family counseling from Master degree level counselors, continuing education on site through Calcasieu Parish School Board, specialized programs (such as substance abuse awareness, social skills training, and conflict resolution, among others), and group counseling.

Dunn emphasized that however disconnected from society these children are through their situations, they still "have their own hopes and dreams for the future". Some of them can't be reached and are lost to suicide, drugs, or incarceration. But the majority of them can be reached and can go on to become productive, law abiding citizens.

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If inclement weather prevails, the concerts will be held inside the Lake Charles Civic Center. Concert goers are encouraged to bring their lawn chairs, however, no outside beverages or pets are allowed on site. For more information, call the City of Lake Charles Arts and Culture Department at 337-491-9147