A local charity event on Friday will have a national flavor.

    The inaugural Suits, Boots & Bluegrass concert will begin at 6 p.m. at the MSU Riley Center in downtown Meridian. Tickets for the event are $29 and can be purchased until the show starts at 7.

    Among the performers are Kemper County native Britt Gully as Jimmie Rodgers; Emi Sunshine and the Rain from east Tennessee; The Bankesters from southern Illinois; North Carolina-based Nu Blu; the Balos Family from Michigan; and Dixie Flavor of Danville, Ala.

    Proceeds from the charity concert will benefit three local nonprofit organizations: Feed by Faith, Hope Village and the Jimmie Rodgers Foundation.

    The closing act, The Bankesters, have recently signed with Compass Records and have been featured on Bluegrass Junction on Sirius/XM.

    “i have a soft spot for young people without families and homes and Hope Village sounds like an organization that is reaching out to and trying minister to youth without homes,” Phil Bankester said. “We support some food-based charities here. I have a friend that runs one and he says the feeling of putting food in front of people who don’t have it is an amazing experience.”

    The Bankesters, as a group have also worked to educate middle school-aged children on bluegrass music, its roots and intricacies.

    Emi Sunshine, another performer, is a 10-year-old bluegrass prodigy who has been on both Good Morning America and Good Morning Australia.  

    Items up for bid in a silent auction include a six-day trip to Key West; a three-night stay on the beach in Destin, Fla.; a stadium seat from the Superdome in New Orleans from the Drew Brees Foundation; a day with bluegrass artist Rhonda Vincent; a basket from Martha White; and other items such as art work and memorabilia.

    Keith Barnacastle, a Meridian native who now resides in Palm Springs, Calif., organized the event.

    “I just want to do this to give back to the community,” Barnacastle said.

    Betty Lou Jones, president of the Jimmie Rodgers Foundation, said fundraisers like Suits, Boots & Bluegrass keep the foundation going. The foundation operates the Jimmie Rodgers Museum, participates in the Neshoba County Fair, talent show, educational programs and other historical cultural programs throughout the year.

    “We don’t just promote Jimmie Rodgers’ music,” Jones said. “We promote all kinds of music because he influenced all kinds of music and got inspiration from African-Americans he worked with on the railroad.”

    The Jimmie Rodgers Museum is open every week from Tuesday to Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

    Hope Village for Children was founded in June 2000 by Meridian native Sela Ward, with a vision to “lead each child to a place where hope is born.”

    Children at Hope Village were removed by the Mississippi Department of Human Services from the custody of a primary caregiver because of abuse, neglect or abandonment.

    In 2006, Hope Village provided more than 10,000 nights of service to more than 200 children.

    Feed by Faith is a nonprofit organization that serves hot, nutritional meals to homeless, low income, and no income families, including the unemployed in Lauderdale County and Meridian.

    Last year, according the organization’s website, they served more than 20,300 meals.  

    “I just want people to come out and support the event, wear your Sunday-go-to-meeting clothes and best boots” Barnacastle said. “We want it to grow into an event that people want to come and see, that people look forward to and want to be a part of.”