Kate and Bill Isles will present a concert in the Staples Music in the Park series on Sunday, Aug. 1, at 7 p.m. Bill and Kate Isles will present a concert in the Staples Music in the Park series on Sunday, Aug. 1, at 7 p.m.

The concert will be held in the Northern Pacific (NP) Park located at 625 6th St. NE. In case of rain, the concerts will be moved to Centennial Auditorium.

For more information on the Music in the Park Series and other concerts in the area, check out the Staples Motley Area Arts Council’s website at www. staplesmotleyarts.org

Bill and his wife Kate last performed at Music in the Park in 2007. Since Bill Isles returned to performing in 2000, he has become one of the most well-known and highlyrespected singer/songwriters in the Midwest.

His love of life has strong roots in his childhood, but his impetus to tell these stories comes from an experience in 1993, when, with just enough warning to drive himself to the hospital, his heart stopped beating. He arrived with just ten minutes to spare.

After being defibrillated, and before the doctors had time to detect and open a blocked artery in his heart, he made a commitment to himself that, if he survived, he would begin to write again. Those paddles restarted more than his heart.

His songs are poetic reflections of life experiences and often explore adventurous spiritual courses. Admittedly a romantic, many of his lyrics describe emotional encounters.

Just when you conclude that a song is about Michelangelo’s first visit to scope out the project at the Sistine Chapel, you start to realize that, perhaps, this is also Isles’ perception of entering the “chapel” of his audience. But then, again, it also hints at the intimate interaction of lovers.

It is this multi-layering that has drawn fans to listen over and over again.

The Music in the Park Series is funded by the Staples Host Lions Club. The Series is organized by the Staples Motley Area Arts Council with the assistance of the Staples Motley Public Schools and the City of Staples.