PorchFest 2025
Romans and Romans at heart love a great fundraiser. But in such a generous community with so many important organizations, donor fatigue and overdone events can be a real challenge. Enter PorchFest — a vibrant, new, community-driven music festival set to be The Bloom Closet NWGA’s signature live music fundraiser, taking place Sunday, Sept. 28, from 2 to 5 p.m. in the Oakdene Place Historic District.
Hosted by Bloom Our Youth and the Rome Area Heritage Foundation, and presented by Gas South, PorchFest will bring the community together for an afternoon of neighborhood strolling, connection and performances by beloved local and regional bands. The festival atmosphere will be enhanced by a variety of food trucks, ensuring a delightful experience for all ages. All proceeds will directly benefit The Bloom Closet NWGA.
“This fun event concept has sprung up in other towns all across Georgia,” said Devon Smyth, program coordinator for The Bloom Closet NWGA. “I first learned of it in Athens, where sometimes R.E.M. even shows up to play a small set. It’s a great event that brings people together for an important cause while showcasing our awesome regional musical talent.”
It may come as a shock, but even here in Rome, children sometimes enter foster care with nothing but the clothes on their backs after years of abuse and neglect. A shortage of foster homes often forces these vulnerable children to leave their home county, separating them from school, friends and family — and compounding the trauma they’ve already experienced.
That’s where Bloom Our Youth comes in. A 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Bloom provides safe, nurturing foster homes and meets children’s immediate needs by distributing free clothing, shoes, toiletries, school supplies, books, stuffed animals and more. These essentials are offered through unique, boutique-style shopping experiences at The Bloom Closet locations in Rome and Fayetteville. The Bloom Closet serves any foster family willing and able to travel for these resources, even if they are not currently served by the Bloom organization. The program also supports at-risk birth families so they can better care for the children in their lives.
With this support system in place and a wide array of needs met, children are better able to focus on healing emotionally and succeeding academically, as their dignity is restored. Having served more than 6,800 foster children in Georgia, Bloom’s mission is grounded in the belief that community has the power to transform lives — helping children bloom where they are planted.
PorchFest was envisioned as one of many tangible ways to reflect the strength of an empowered, aware and generous community. For just $10 per person to attend, guests are invited to make a meaningful difference in the lives of foster children — while connecting with the community in an enjoyable and powerful way.
“This joyful, neighborhood- and people-focused event will raise critical support for local foster youth while celebrating the heart of what makes Rome strong: neighbors helping neighbors,” Smyth said. “Building a better community starts with all of us.”
Since launching in 2024, The Bloom Closet in Rome has supported more than 1,000 children — already on track to provide each kid with more than $1,200 in essential items annually. The physical space is located inside Restoration Rome, which has become a hub for birth, foster and adoptive families, housing multiple nonprofits under one roof.
“The collaboration with Restoration Rome just made sense,” Smyth said. “It is a life-giving anchor in the region for families to receive the services they need and deserve.”
As one of the newer kids on the block, it takes time to get established. In addition to becoming a key fundraiser, PorchFest is also slated to provide an important awareness opportunity for The Bloom Closet and its work in the surrounding region.
“Northwest Georgia has been very receptive and welcoming to the work of Bloom,” Smyth said. “Serving families at the highest level from all around our DFCS region — which includes Floyd, Polk, Bartow, Paulding, Douglas, and Haralson counties — has been the mission from the very beginning.”
Throughout the Sunday afternoon, guests at the inaugural PorchFest will enjoy three hours of 20-minute sets across a variety of musical styles and genres, performed from the front porches of historic homes throughout the district. Scheduled performers include the “salty, smooth and lime-infused” Bourbon & Ginger; intergalactic folk-rockers The Common Reeds; D Bell & the Beauticians of “Frosted Tips” fame; singer-songwriter Dylan Lester; acoustic-vibe Lowell and Friends; guitar-driven, Americana-adjacent Matthew Grant; and the multi-genre Rahu Music Collective (John Graham, Jeff Lidke and friends).
PorchFest will not only bring the community together for an important cause — it will also spotlight its unique setting: one of Rome’s most charming, but under-the-radar, historic neighborhoods.
The Oakdene Place Historic District sits quietly across the Etowah River south of Downtown Rome, adjacent to the Second Avenue bridge. It’s often overlooked, despite a beautiful wrought-iron sign proudly bearing the year of its establishment: 1880. As one of Rome’s oldest residential neighborhoods, it was originally developed as a planned community across 27 wooded acres of rolling hills.
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- PorchFest 2025
Streets like River Avenue and Coral Avenue are lined with historic towering shade trees, stone walls, iron fencing, and beautiful bungalow-style homes. The neighborhood’s signature late-Victorian residences feature Queen Anne and Neoclassical architecture with period details such as balustrades, leaded glass, hardwood floors, extensive millwork, and — of course — expansive front porches perfect for entertaining and acoustic performances. Notable properties include the Brower House, where future U.S. President Woodrow Wilson met and courted his bride-to-be Ellen Louise Axson, and the home of Judge Junius Hillyer, which was saved and restored after a devastating fire. Oakdene Place was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
Immediately following PorchFest, special ticket holders and sponsors will head across the river for a special “Back Porch” patron party at River Remedy Brewing Co.’s new Broad Street location. Featuring music by electrified Americana trio Russell Cook & the Sweet Teeth and delicious food from John Henry’s Grill, patrons will also have the chance to enjoy a special seltzer crafted to commemorate the event.
While children are far more than the clothes on their backs or the supplies in their backpacks, those essentials matter. It’s easy to overlook a segment of the community we aren’t personally connected to — but these children are not statistics. They’re our neighbors. Meeting their basic needs gives them space to heal and grow into the best versions of themselves.
“Building a better community starts with all of us!” Smyth said. “This joyful, engaging community-focused fundraiser will raise critical support for local foster youth while celebrating the heart of what makes Rome strong: neighbors helping neighbors.”
PorchFest general admission tickets, host/VIP tickets and sponsorships are still available. To support the event or learn more, visit https://secure.qgiv.com/event/porchfest. Tickets will also be available for purchase onsite at the event. For more information about Bloom Our Youth and The Bloom Closet NWGA, including in-kind donation opportunities and wish list items, visit www.bloomfosters.org/bloom-closet.
