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Follow Your Heart Benefit Concert in Harrison Hot Springs coming together

Concert will benefit Variety Children’s Charity
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Harrison country artist Todd Richard is helping organize and promote the Follow Your Heart Benefit Concert set for Feb. 18 at Memorial Hall. Tickets are now on sale for the event that will benefit Variety Children’s Charity. (File Photo)

There’s a hum of excitement as a massive concert event is on its way to Harrison Hot Springs.

Tourism Harrison River Valley is hosting the Follow Your Heart Benefit Concert on Saturday, Feb. 18, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Memorial Hall (290 Esplanade Avenue). Doors open at 6:30 p.m.

Early-bird tickets are now on sale and proceeds will benefit the Variety Children’s Charity.

Harrison’s own country artist Todd Richard will headline the big event with a specially assembled Follow Your Heart Band. Richard needs no introduction for those who have lived in Agassiz-Harrison for a while, frequently performing at local venues and throughout B.C. He is a two-time winner of the B.C. Country Music Awards Humanitarian of the Year, and his song “Follow Your Heart” was custom-written especially to benefit Variety Children’s Charity.

RELATED: Variety’s charity work has Agassiz impact

It was the song “Follow Your Heart” that initially sparked the idea for the local fundraiser, Richard told The Observer. He talked it over with Robert and Sonja Reyerse over dinner around Christmas.

“I said ‘I just have to throw this idea out there that I had,’ and they, right away, were like ‘let’s do this,’” he said. From there, Tourism Harrison, the Harrison Festival Society, the Harrison Hot Springs Fire Department quickly came on board to help any way they could, and they certainly weren’t alone.

“It’s just kind of snowballed,” Richard said. “It all just came from this idea of (hopefully) making it an annual event.”

Richard said the goal of the event is to raise $5,000 for Variety Children’s Charity. Based on the support from the community early on, there’s no telling how quickly they will reach their goal.

“Every day, somebody else is involved either by donating to the silent auction or saying they’ll volunteer,” Richard said. “You can just feel it. It’s a really good feeling already. We’ve been here for over 20 years now, and this is one of the few areas that still have the small town (support) and everybody really does step up. It’s just so awesome.”

READ ALSO: Former Harrison performer, Variety icon Peter Chipman has passed away

The Village of Harrison Hot Springs donated the cost of renting memorial Hall for the event.

Special guests include Jackson Hollow co-founders Mike Sanyshyn and Tianna Lefebvre, Becca Hess and Chilliwack (the band, not the city) bassist Gord Maxwell. The night’s events also include a silent auction with items from local businesses. The Harrison Festival Society will be hosting concessions.

Early-bird tickets are available until Sunday, Jan. 22 and are $26.35 each. Regular admission is $31.68. Tickets can be purchased via Eventbrite by searching “Follow Your Heart Family Day Concert.”

The Variety Show of Hearts Telethon is set for the weekend after the concert. In B.C. Variety Children’s Charity has been focused on supporting children with special needs throughout the province since 1966.

To learn more about the upcoming event and how you can help, visit variety.bc.ca.

The Follow Your Heart Benefit Concert is still accepting silent auction items. To submit an item for the auction, you may drop it off at Tourism Harrison River Valley, which is temporarily located at 102-160 Lillooet Avenue in Harrison Hot Springs.



adam.louis@ ahobserver.com

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