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Record crowd expected for CareFest

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By Sam Waller

A record crowd is expected for this year’s CareFest, according to organizers, with numbers possibly nearing 2,000.

The fourth CareFest, a fund­raiser for ResourceCare’s outreach programs, is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 27, at Happy Wife Happy Life event venue.

Preceding that will be “Lunch on the Lawn” planned from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Bank Park, with Jeff Martin playing from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Several food trucks will be on hand to provide lunch.

For every $25 spent at the food trucks or with participating downtown businesses, buyers will be entered into a drawing for two lifetime general admission tickets to CareFest.

Gates open at 3:00 p.m. out at the CareFest venue, and starting at 4:00 p.m., six bands and two acoustic artists will perform.

The Read Southall Band and Giovannie and the Hired Guns will be the headline acts. Also performing are Kevin Fowler, Slade Coulter and Jacob Stelly.

Several county-based bands and individuals will appear during the day. The Davis Brothers Band will open the event, with Matt Stapp and Jeff Martin playing an acoustic swap in the VIP lounge.

Gates will open at 3:00 p.m. with bands playing on two stages until midnight.

Organizer Ragan Riley of ResourceCare said online ticket sales have been strong with a crowd approaching 2,000 expected for the one-day music festival.

“Counting the VIP tickets given to sponsors, we have 500 VIP ticketholders and 800 preferred and general admission,” Riley said. “We should pass our biggest year in attendance, which was 2019 with about 1,100.”

Advance tickets may be purchased through outhousetickets.com.

“People can still purchase general admission and cooler passes online throughout the event, VIP, preferred and parking passes will only be available the day of at the gate,” Riley said. “We have a limited number of VIP and preferred tickets to sell on Saturday, and they will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. We do recommend purchasing tickets ahead of time through outhousetickets.com to allow for smoother entrance to the festival.”

All ticketholders are urged to either print out tickets purchased online or have the tickets pulled up on a phone to speed up the entry process at the gate.

Riley said the number of $65 general admission tickets available at the gate will be based on available parking.

“There is a limited amount of parking space, so once that is filled up, we have to stop selling general admission tickets at the gate,” she said. “VIP parking will only be guaranteed until 7:00 p.m. for those who have already purchased tickets online or received them through their sponsor package.”

VIP ticketholders are given front-row stage access, access to the outdoor VIP tent, full access to the air-conditioned barn venue, which includes food and beverages, along with access to the Monte Lewis meet-and-greet tent and the Green Gypsy bar located in the VIP tent.

Preferred ticketholders also have access to the VIP tent and front-row seats.

“If you want to bring your own cooler, there will be a cooler fee of $25 at the gate for any size cooler,” Riley said. “No glass or food is allowed into the event. A parking pass is $25.”

Food trucks will be on hand to provide food to purchase throughout the event. No outside food is allowed.