As kids get out of school and the region prepares for the summer heat, local communities are gearing up for something positive to focus on.

Something I love about our suburban communities across Arapahoe and Douglas counties is the effort our local towns put into presenting summer activities and fun.

Castle Rock, minus the pandemic years, has really built an events program to be proud of with weekly farmers markets, community concerts and community gatherings.

It’s like the feeling of Friday night lights, when you can celebrate your community by coming together, enjoying food, celebrating local vendors and loving the fact that your town officials care enough to bring events catered to all ages.

Centennial has a slew of activities coming up this summer, and recently celebrated the park’s 10th anniversary with a special celebration.

I have grown quite fond of Englewood as a community. The community’s small-town feel comes alive with weekend neighborhood parties and gatherings. Besides being home to the Pirates Cover Water Park, Englewood also gets hyper-local through the Neighborhood Nights programs. On June 23, the celebration will be held at Bates-Logan Park.

Lone Tree is also getting in on the action with sunset swims at Cool Creek Park. At Sweetwater Park, the Backyard Beats series is already underway and going to be a blast for the community to enjoy.

In Littleton, the Littleton Fine Arts Guild is presenting its 60th anniversary show in June. Saturdays in town are going to be filled with plenty of options, including the Littleton Jam free concert on June 25.

Then, we have Highlands Ranch. On any given week, logging on to the community association’s Facebook page is an adventure of what’s coming next. Festivals, adult pool parties and so much more

In Parker, I am becoming increasingly impressed with how much effort is going into building the events programs. There have been quite a few concerts over the last few months with popular country bands and more.

Parker will also have its annual festival, and let’s not forget the H2O’Brien Water Park that has opened.

While the Denver metro area is huge, I love that each community has its own identity and true commitment to providing residents and visitors a wide assortment of summer fun that feels like we live in a small town where everybody enjoys the day out together.

On a separate note, I am also impressed with how much our communities and school districts do each summer to provide entertainment, care and camps for our younger generations.