TOGETHER ON THE RIVER

America’s River Roots is a signature event to kick off America’s 250th celebration, scheduled for October 08-12, 2025 on the Cincinnati, Covington and Newport riverfronts.

Join us in a celebration of the vibrant culture of America’s river cities, where we honor the incredible impact they've made on our nation over the last 250 years. The unique fusion of Music, Cuisine and Culture found at America's River Roots creates a "can't miss" event that will fill the riverfront with the sights, sounds and flavors of our nation. We can't wait to see you there!

America's River Roots

An exceptional cast of community leaders and sponsors have assembled to host a signature event that celebrates Ohio River Valley’s pivotal role in shaping our nation in advance of its upcoming 250th birthday in 2026. The event has been designated by the America 250-Ohio Commission with a request to the national commission for America’s River Roots to be the official kick off signature event in October 2025.

Our goal is to showcase the uniquely diverse cultures, cuisine and music of America’s inland waterways that distinctly shaped our nation through this wondrous ecological region. We will celebrate the origins of roots music with national, emerging and local artists across multiple stages, enjoy river cuisine presented by celebrated chefs, and highlight our unrivaled river culture. Themed Riverboats from nine cities will share the food and music of their region. A River Cities Expo Pavilion will promote their cultural tourism assets. Regional cultural tours including Freedom Journey, Kentucky Bourbon Trail, World Heritage Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks and Ohio River Recreational Trail will be featured.

The event gives area residents an opportunity to explore their heritage and history while connecting with our common river roots. The eclectic mix of music, culture, and culinary experiences along the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky world-class riverfront will attract regional/national visitors and international media attention to the region.

The cities of Cincinnati, Covington and Newport, Cincinnati Museum Center, National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, Cincinnati Parks, and Cincinnati Parks Foundation are partnering with America's River Roots Experience, a nonprofit corporation, formed to develop and promote the culture, cuisine and music of America’s inland rivers in the Ports of Cincinnati, OH, Newport and Covington, KY.

Title Sponsor

Event Presenter

Official Product

Official Supplier

Event Partner

Cincinnati Parks Foundation

Strader Foundation

Haile Foundation

Harold C. Schott Foundation

R.C. Durr Foundation

Horizon Community Funds/Riverfront Commons

Luther Charitable Foundation

Johnson Foundation

The Oliver Family Foundation

OneNKY Alliance:

Corporex
Fischer Homes
Perfetti Van Melle
Verst Logistics
St. Elizabeth Healthcare
CVG
Paul Hemmer Company
Central Bank
KLH Engineers
Northern Kentucky University
Thomas More University

In Collaboration With:

Thank You To Our Team

Honorary Advisory Board Co-Chairs

Mike DeWine

State of Ohio

Govenor

Andy Beshear

State of Kentucky

Govenor

Aftab Pureval

City of Cincinnati

Mayor

Rob Portman

The Portman Center for Policy Solutions

Founder

America’s River Roots Executive Committee

Rick Greiwe

Greiwe Development

Co-Chair

Tim Fogarty

WCM Holdings

Co-Chair

Kelly Kolar

Kolar Design

Co-Chair

George Molinsky

Taft Law

Secretary

Justin Vanderglas

Clark Schaefer Hackett

Treasurer

Steve Dessner

MusicNOW

Member

Tysonn Betts

Ministry of Design

Member

Bill Sarran

Member

Kyla Woods

HCSO/Crowd or Camera Communications

Lydia Jacobs-Horton

Member

Advisory Board

Jeff Berding

FC Cincinnati

Douglas Berlon

First Financial

Captain Alan Bernstein

BB Riverboats

Julie Calvert

VisitCincy

Brent Cooper

NKY Chamber

Bob Coughlin

Founder, Flying Pig

Brendon Cull

Cincinnati Chamber

Keith Dailey

Kroger

Andrew DeWitt

Dewey's Pizza

Karen Finan

OneNKY Alliance

Leigh Fox

altafiber

Nancy Grayson

Horizon Community Funds of Northern Kentucky

Doug Hart

Doug Hart Consulting

Steve Hightower

Hightower Petroleum

Laurence Jones

RiskVersity

Woody Keown

National Underground Railroad Freedom Center

Julie Kirkpatrick

Meet NKY

Kick Lee

Cincinnati Music Accelerator

Anastasia Mileham

Cincinnati Experience

Ty Moore

VeraVis

Elizabeth Pierce

Cincinnati Museum Center

Holly Brians Ragusa

Pres. OPA, Author/Speaker

Morgan Riguad

Skate Downtown Cincy

Scott Robertson

RCF Group

Tim Schroeder

CTI

Brandon Simmons

KMK Consulting

Mu Sinclaire

Mike Sipple, Jr.

Centennial & Talent Magnet Institute

Jennifer Hafner Spieser

Cincinnati Parks Foundation

Chad Summe

eGateway Capital

Dudley Taft

Dudley Taft Band

Nick Vehr

Vehr Communications

Kathy Wade

Learning Through Art

John J. Williams

First Student

Tom Williams

North American Properties

The America's River Roots Staff

Susan Fisher

Executive Director

Chris Horn

Marketing Director

Theresa Bannon

River Operations Director

Erin Heekin

Sponsorship Director

Greg Dorr

Sponsor Activations

Planning Team

Bourbon Experience

Amy Tobin

Brand Development

Tysonn Betts

Brewmaster Experience

Aaron Deininger

Brewery District CURC

Community Outreach

Olivia and Josh Smitherman

Jostin Construction

Cuisine Curation

Paul Sturkey

Kroger Innovation

Cultural Tourism

Julie Kirkpatrick

MeetNKY

Festival Operations

Lori Salzarulo

11 Events Group

Foundation Grants

Carolyn Swabek

Freedom Speakers Series

Andrew Lewis

Portman Center for Policy Solutions

"Good & Local" Bazaar

Rachel DesRochers

Incubator Kitchen Collective

Gospel Revival

Eric Rigaud, Rod Wallace

Buoyant

Kings of the River

Yemi Oyediran, JP Leong

AfroChine

Music Creative Directors

Aaron and Bryce Dessner

The National

National Media Relations

Anastasia Mileham

Cincinnati Experience

Public Relations

Jackie Reau

GameDay

Purple People Bridge Bazaar

Southbank Partners

Riverboat Cruises

Terri Bernstein, Tamara Callabro, Rick Menninger, Nancy Willhoite

River Roots Digital Platforms

Kelly Kolar, Kolar Design

Holly Brians Ragusa

Sales Consultant

Tom Kempton

Sounds From The River

Kathy Wade

Learning Through Art

Marketing Partners

Anchor

DMI Live

Fusion Media Group

Game Day Communications

Hyperquake

The Katalyst Group

Q1 Media

US Digital Partners

The MCS Agency

The Voice of the Your Customer

Become a Sponsor

America's River Roots has deep civic pride and aims to improve our city, region and nation through education, fellowship and community focused entertainment. If you would like to contribute to that mission, please contact us and we can discuss a partnership customized to your team.

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