Monday (today, March 25) starting at noon central time, we will spend time with Jara Johnson. She’s originally from Clarinda, and has known for a long time she is a musician and songwriter. This passion took her to Nashville, where she continues to have a presence as she pursues her dream, even while living and working in Pella.
Jara moved to the central Iowa town when her husband accepted a job there, and now she is the associate director of the Pella Opera House—dubbed the Bluebird Cafe of Iowa.
This column is a ‘potluck’ because there are a variety of stories to sample throughout this state, and we set forth some of the more interesting ones through interactive Zoom interview calls on Mondays over the noon hour. The sessions are recorded and uploaded as podcasts.
Join us. We’ll find out together:
What’s it like to perform in the iconic Bluebird Cafe, made even more famous by the television series, Nashville?
What does she wish she had known years ago that she’s learned the hard way?
What does the Pella Opera House have to offer?
As a parent with two small children, what does she think is working in the state, and what could be better?
Learn more about Jara: //okobojiwritersretreat.
Your Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86502242831
Iowa Writers’ Collaborative
Did you catch the Sunday Roundup of columns by our Iowa Writers’ Collaborative members?
I'm pumped to see & hear Jara Johnson on your Potluck call on Zoom today! I've heard her recordings a few times. She is really good, and as we'll all see today, as genuine as they come. I've been hearing about Jara and her talent all her life -- from her grandmother Pat Eberly and her late grandfather Merl Eberly, of Clarinda, my lifetime friends. Merl was a newspaper colleague, too, and all of us were and are baseball junkies.