Nashville fundraiser unites bluegrass, barbecue
The Nashville Church of Christ Bluegrass and Barbecue fundraiser event for Love INC will take place Saturday, Sept. 7 at Nashville Church of Christ from 5:30-8 p.m. and will feature a pair of local musical performers and food.
If there’s two things that seem destined to go together in Holmes County, the pairing of bluegrass music and great food go hand in hand.
That combination is what Love In the Name of Christ of Greater Holmes County is featuring in the upcoming Bluegrass and Barbecue event on Saturday, Sept. 7.
The public is invited to a bluegrass concert and a barbecue meal benefit that will see all the proceeds go to benefit the many programs of Love INC. All the food and music will be free to the public, although there will be a freewill donation taken as part of the fundraising process.
“It’s going to be a fun night of great music and great food and plenty of fellowship,” said Vicki Conn, executive director of Love INC. “We invite everyone to stop out and enjoy this relaxing evening.”
The event will take place at Nashville Church of Christ from 5:30-8 p.m. and will feature a pair of local musical performers.
John Schmid, founder of Common Ground Ministries, has been a longtime favorite when it comes to entertaining with his guitar, sense of humor and Johnny Cash-like sound. Liberated will bring its country gospel music, and the quintet will join Schmid in offering plenty of bluegrass sound with a gospel message.
The idea originated from Nashville Church of Christ Pastor Brad Dodson, whose church had been hosting this event for several years. He said they wanted to invest more heavily in a community organization that was touching the lives of many and partnered with Love INC.
Conn said the partnership is one more example of how caring this community is when it comes to meeting the needs of its families.
“It’s heartwarming to experience this type of support, and Nashville Church of Christ has been a wonderful partner with us for years, and we appreciate them wanting to partner with us for this great event,” Conn said. “Building these types of relationships with churches, families and other organizations throughout Holmes County continues to be a critical part of our mission to provide for our families in Holmes County.”
For its part, Nashville Church of Christ has been hosting this event as an outreach ministry for its church for the past half dozen years. However, Dodson said they wanted to do more community outreach, especially for Love INC. Thus, it turned its church event into a community one that spans the entire county.
“We discussed several things, and one of them was how can we help Love INC,” Dodson said. “This was something we felt very good about pursuing because we know what an incredible impact Love INC has in our county.”
Nashville CC is certainly a big part of that outreach. The church has a cleaning ministry that sends its members around to people’s homes who tend to be hoarders or to people who simply need help cleaning out their homes of unwanted items. In addition, Dodson said they work with widows and widowers who have items they would like to see go to a good home elsewhere.
Conn said it is because of churches and organizations like Nashville CC, which is donating all the food for the upcoming event, and businesses like Troy Miller Agency, which is covering the cost for the musical talent, that Love INC is able to thrive.
She said she hopes many people choose to come and participate in this event, knowing their donations will allow many families in Holmes County to meet some needs they otherwise would struggle to meet.
Nashville Church of Christ is located at 13457 state Route 39 in the heart of Nashville.