NILES — Carol and Kaye’s Dixieland Band has played in some “crazy places,” said Carol Stelter, trumpeter and organizer of Carol and Kaye’s Dixieland Band. Her group has played at funerals, farmer’s markets and even an alpaca festival.

This Thursday, the band will be performing at a less “crazy” place. The Dixieland Band will lead off the second annual Niles Summer Concert Series at 6 p.m. at Riverfront Park’s amphitheater.

The group will be joined by Therapeutic Equestrian Center, a Watervliet-based non-profit that teaches disabled Berrien, Cass and Van Buren County residents to ride horses.

The tag team is part of a larger goal of the summer concert series, an event run solely by Niles volunteer Caryn Adler. Each Thursday summer evening, one area musical artist and one area non-profit will partner up. The artist will perform while the non-profit will promote their cause.

“We did it last summer, and it was nice to be able to be asked again,” said TEC president Autumn Zick.

Zick said TEC’s goal is to help people of all ages and of all disabilities build up skills that their disabilities may hinder. Participants enroll in a multi-week session, either alone or in a small group, and learn how to handle and ride a horse.

When a person attends the weekly session, they will work with horse handlers and volunteers to build specific skills, whether it be strength, flexibility or focus. The goal, Zick said, is to ultimately build a participant into becoming an independent rider.

Catering to a specific participant’s disabilities while maintaining horses and a barn means that many volunteers are needed, she said. Last year, 8,400 volunteer hours were logged.

While TEC will be asking for donations during the Riverfront Park concert, it will also be seeking to find new volunteers. While some volunteers do need to have horse handling experience, other opportunities, like lawn and barn maintenance, do not require any prior horse experience.

“It’s a great opportunity for teens who are trying to figure out what they want to do for a career,” Zick said. “Maybe they’re interested in teaching, maybe they’re interested in becoming a physical therapist or a veterinarian or going into nursing, social work.”

Prospective volunteers that cannot make it to the concert can sign up on TEC’s website, said Zick.

Zick estimates that about 25 percent of TEC’s participants were from south Berrien County, where Niles is located. She said this makes the summer concert series meaningful to be a part of.

“There’s obviously a lot service organizations out there in the county, and it’s nice to be remembered and to be included,” Zick said. “We really do appreciate that.”

While TEC promotes its programs and volunteer opportunities on the ground, Carol and Kaye’s Dixieland Band will be accompanying the group on stage.

Dixieland, also known as hot jazz, saw its heyday in 1920s and 1930s New Orleans. Stelter and the six other Michiana-area musicians that make up the group want to keep the music alive.

“Everybody comes together, and we just really have a great time. There’s nothing else to say,” she said with a laugh.

The original Dixieland Band was a South Bend Masonic Temple band that formed in the 1960s. Stelter and Kaye Rowe, who formerly played saxophone with the group, joined in the 1980s and disaffiliated from the group.

Since then, the group has played at a variety of area venues. The current seven-piece lineup is composed of members from multiple Michiana cities, from South Bend to St. Joseph.

“I got band directors. I got professional musicians. I’m just so glad to have them all to get together with me,” Stelter said. “There’s a lot of years of experience. It’s great that it’s Dixieland music. Everybody has their own part. It’s not a competition or anything. We’re just having fun.”

Stelter said that she finds Niles not only a great city for a music scene, but a great place to attend events. She said there is always something going on.

She hopes that Thursday evening audience members will laugh, clap and smile while the Dixieland Band plays.

“Music takes people out of the problems they have for a few minutes,” Stelter said. “The entertainment just puts you in the moment and just lets you enjoy and feel life.”