Country Music Fans: Sharing Hands, Sharing Hearts
Country music fans are the best ones in the world. Time and again, we have all showed our support not just to our favorite artists and groups but also to their favorite causes. On December 19th of this year, country music fans once again showed support to a worthwhile cause by helping donate 95 food boxes containing a turkey or ham and all of the accoutrements of a complete holiday meal (turkey and small ham; boxed or bagged stuffing mix; boxed mashed potatoes; brown gravy packets; dinner rolls; canned sweet yams; cranberry sauce; cans of vegetables; cookies or cake mix; pumpkin or berry pie (frozen); and orange or apple juice).
Through the joint effort initiated by the organizers of The Willamette Country Music Festival and Sharing Hands, a local non-profit organization, the food boxes were then distributed to deserving families from around the Brownsville area.
This donation was made possible by the The Willamette Country Music Festival’s organizer’s ingenious plan of pledging free general admission three-day passes to country music fans who will donate a food box for the worthwhile cause. The announcement was also made through various country music blogs. After the collection drive, over 4,000 pounds of food items were collected and stored at Randy’s Main Street Coffee. The volunteer group Sharing Hands, under the supervision of director Don Andrews then oversaw the packaging and food distribution. As an added Christmas gift, presents were also given for children in each household.
This program, which was conceptualized in time for the holiday season, was also a way for the organizers to drum up support for the Third Annual Willamette Country Music Festival, slated for Aug. 19th to the 22nd at Brownsville, Oregon, USA. Sponsored by Bi-Mart, the festival invites country music fans from all over the country to this great outdoor country music concert event which features nightly concerts from country music’s biggest stars; overnight RV and tent camping facilities; a food and merchandise fair; and the popular Bi-Mart Family Fun Zone including a climbing wall, inflatable bounce houses & slides for kids, and mechanical bull rides—all guaranteeing a fun activity for young and old country music fans alike.
Previous performers included Restless Heart, Josh Gracin, Jamie O’Neal, Rockie Lynne, Jason Meadows and John Michael Montgomery, among others. This year, Darryl Worley has signed on to be part of the headlining acts for the festival’s opening concert night. Aside from providing good music and wholesome family entertainment, festival organizers are also committed to helping out the community by assisting in providing funds for local sports and arts programs to local high schools. This year, the main recipients were the almost 100 families given food boxes for the holidays, a program which was undertaken in collaboration with Sharing Hands.
Indeed, country music fans will not just get good music and clean family entertainment from previous Willamette Country Music Festival, they have also been given opportunities to share their hearts through its worthwhile community programs.
For more details about the festivities, you can check out http://WillametteCountryMusicFest.com; call (5-41) 497-7588; or send an email to CountryFestSales@aol.com.
