BROWNSVILLE - For the second year in a row Mon Valley communities are joining together for an evening dinner cruise on the Monongahela River.

This year's cruise will be held on Tuesday, Aug. 3, with the boat leaving from Charleroi Trustees Park. Participating in this year's cruise are organizations from Brownsville, Charleroi, Monessen, Donora and Belle Vernon. Each community will be honoring a "distinguished citizen."

"We are honoring John Detisch in Brownville," said Norma Ryan of the Brownsville Area Revitalization Corp. (BARC), the participating organization from Brownsville.

Ryan said Detisch, who lives in Republic, is being honored for his contribution to the community.

"He established Music on the Mon, which became Music and Reading on the Mon and which has now moved to the (Nemacolin) castle," Ryan said.

Ryan said she first met Detisch about seven years ago, when she was mayor of Brownsville. She had contacted musician Sammy Bill of Republic about holding concerts at the Brownsville Wharf.

"He sent John Detisch to me. John had this marvelous idea that communities all along the riverfront could hold music along the river," Ryan said.

Ryan said the only problem was the hot sun beating down on the musicians and the audience for the late afternoon waterfront concerts. The venue was moved to the shaded grounds of Nemacolin Castle and Detisch began partnering with the Brownsville Rotary Club for story hours and free books for children in connection with the concerts.

"It became a family event. It blossomed into more than we ever could have imagined," Ryan said.

Ryan said two of the concerts held this year have drawn large crowds. The Big Bedtime Story drew an audience of about 200 people, while the Chris Higbee concert attracted an audience of about 170 people. Ryan said she wished all of the free concerts did that well.

"We average 50 to 100; it ought to be more. We're always open to suggestions on how to promote these free concerts in the community," Ryan said.

This year's cruise is being sponsored by BARC, the Donora Smog Commemorative Committee, Mon Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Monessen Historical Society and TEAM Charleroi. For some 20 years the Greater Brownsville Area Chamber of Commerce had sponsored the cruise, but in recent years it became too difficult to sell enough tickets to bring the boat down from Pittsburgh.

"For one community to do this, it is very overwhelming. By working together, each community is only responsible for selling 50 tickets," Ryan said.

Ryan said the dinner cruise also gives members of each of the participating communities an opportunity to discuss what is happening in their areas. This year's cruise will be aboard the Gateway Clipper Fleet's "Empress."

Passengers will begin boarding the boat around 6 p.m. in Charleroi. It will leave the dock at 6:30 for a cruise that will last approximately two and a half hours.

Tickets for the cruise are available by contacting the BARC office at 724-785-9331.