NILES — Dressed in matching vests and bow ties, the men of the Lighthouse Chorus will be next to perform in Riverfront Park for the Summer Concerts in the Park series.

The Lighthouse Chorus will perform starting at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Amphitheater. This week’s featured nonprofit is Meals on Wheels. Those who visit the concert will be invited to donate or learn more about the organization that provides meals to those in need.

Chorus member Bill Ropp, 74, of Berrien Springs, said the 19 members of the acapella chorus will entice listeners with a number of well-known songs. Those visiting the park Thursday night can hear songs like “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” and “Breaking Up is Hard to Do.”

During select performances, a quartet of singers will break away from the chorus to sing a four-part harmony.

Ropp said the chorus travels all over the Michiana area singing a variety of music.

“Not everything we sing is barbershop songs,” Ropp said. “We do some patriotic, spiritual ballads, du-wop and a little jazz. It is mostly in the barbershop style.”

While the Lighthouse Chorus practices in Niles at the Grace Methodist Church, Ropp said this is the first time the group will be performing in Riverfront Park.

Ropp said they are excited for the chance to unite people through song.

“The songs we sing, they will be able to relate to,” Ropp said. “I think they will enjoy it. It’s just a good time.”

The Lighthouse Chorus first formed in 1999. In addition to their dapper fashion sense, the group of men is known for their fall concert, which raises money to support local food pantries. The chorus has performed the benefit concert for the past four years, bringing in thousands of dollars to support local food pantries. This effort influenced the Lighthouse Chorus to select the Meals on Wheels food pantry to be the featured nonprofit for this performance.

Since their formation in 1999, the Lighthouse Chorus has achieved many notable accolades, including receiving the Best Small Chorus Award for the entire state of Michigan for three consecutive years and performing at the world-renowned Buckeye Invitational in Columbus, Ohio.

For Ropp, the chorus has given him a chance to revive his passion for music. Growing up in Iowa, Ropp said he sang with a chorus as a child and later as an adult in college. But, he took a 45-year break from performing, until he found the Lighthouse Chorus.

Ropp encouraged the community to visit Riverfront Park for the performance. For those who want to hear more of the group, he invited people to visit the Lighthouse Chorus’ practices which take place from 7 to 9:30 p.m. Thursdays at Grace Methodist Church in Niles.

For those that can carry a tune, Ropp encouraged them to join the chorus.

To learn more about the Lighthouse Chorus, visit lighthousechorus.org/about.html.