I received a call from a recent gradaute and native of Roanoke yesterday. The young man in his early 20s was currently living in a large midwest city and had recevied a job offer to return to Roanoke. He was debating, not the job offer, but the lifestyle option. (Typically, this is reversed. People want to be in Roanoke and have a difficult time finding the job, although they exist.)

He was told by someone about what the City of Roanoke is doing to attract young adults, so he called and we chatted.

He asked me were there enough young people his age to socialize with and were there things to do with these people. The answer to these two questions could be the deciding factors.

When I told him about all of the YP groups and the festivals and events that were occurring, he said it was much more than he thought. No surprise.

I told him about the concept I have shared many times and I will do it again. It’s not that there isn’t anything to do in Roanoke, rather, there is a lack of effective promotion and communication of things to do to different generations using different communication channels.

Below are just a couple of events that come to mind that are occurring in the next few weeks in which a lot of young people are involved:

Square Society presents Microfestivus on August 11.

First Fridays and Bella Magazine present Mardia Gras Girls Night Out on September 7.

Valley Forward presents the Forum for the Future on September 13.

Please share these unique events with those folks saying there is nothing to do in Roanoke.