Villa Park VFW to host Toys for Tots event with local band The Minors of Rock Dec. 12
On Thursday, Dec. 12, the Villa Park Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2801 is putting on a benefit show for Toys for Tots featuring the local band, The Minors of Rock.
The Villa Park VFW is located at 39 E. St. Charles Road, Villa Park.
Admission is free to this family-friendly event. The doors open at 6 p.m.
The VFW is accepting donations of new unwrapped toys. Drinks and food are available for purchase.
The Minors of Rock are four boys from Lombard. Three are sophomores at Willowbrook High School in Villa Park: Keith Harris (guitar and vocals), Parker Noesen (drums), and Jesse Vasel (guitar and vocals). Jesse's younger brother, Jaden Vasel (bass guitar, keyboards, vocals) is a student at Jackson Middle School in Villa Park. Jaden joined the band when he was only in first grade.
The boys have been playing together for the last six years. They started playing gigs in fifth grade at Westmore Elementary School and since 2013 have played dozens of times at the Villa Park VFW's "Rock and Wings Show," typically put on the last Thursday of every month.
Additionally, The Minors of Rock has played at the Villa Park Fourth of July Parade for the last 4 years, Villa Park's Summerfest, District 45 Festival, Fitz's Spare Keys in Elmhurst, as well as school dances, car shows, and private parties.
One of the highlights of their young musical career so far was opening for Chicago band White Mystery at a special event at Sam Ash Music Store in Lombard.
The Minors of Rock play rock 'n' roll, including originals and classic covers. They cover songs by The Beatles, The Black Keys, Oasis, The White Stripes, Arctic Monkeys, Cage the Elephant, and The Cars, just to name a few. The band started writing songs as soon as they got together and already have written several crowd-pleasers. Their goal is to be an all-originals band.
The Minors of Rock have a unique origin story. It all began when the three older boys decided they wanted to be in their fourth-grade talent show at Westmore Elementary School in Lombard. They put together a skit singing Beatles songs with Keith's dad (Dominic Harris) accompanying them on guitar. The longtime musician told them he would help with the talent show, but that they needed to be a real band by the next one. With Dominic mentoring them, they rehearsed in his studio and soon were gig ready.
The band is looking forward to booking more shows for next year and working on a recording of new material for their debut album. To learn more about the band, visit www.facebook.com/TheMinorsofRock/.
For information, visit villaparkvfw.org or follow the post on Facebook.