I would like to begin by thanking everyone who has purchased the Rage Against the Wind CD so far. The response has been overwhelming from those who have purchased and listened to this product which so many worked so hard on.
It is difficult to discuss our very dismal turnout to Saturday's live event. It was certainly a lesser turnout than we had expected and not anywhere near the turnout we had hoped for. It would be pointless to make assumptions as to why the turnout was so small, so I won't bother with that for now.
For all of you who did attend this free event to support local musicians and donate whatever you could to our cause for storm relief in rural Alabama you have our upmost respect and appreciation. Each one of you means a great deal and for those who have helped spread the word to those who did not attend and express that they missed something fantastic, we love you all.
None of these hard working musicians deserved the experience of such a small turnout from their own community, but I have tremendous pride in their professional demeanor to perform as if there were hundreds or thousands looking on.
To Victoria Hallman who traveled 9 hours roundtrip for our event, and our event only we deeply appreciate not only your time, but your extreme patience as well as the many things you donated to this cause.
To Gadsden's powerful young 4 piece ensemble, Halfway to Hindsight who traveled nearly 5 hours roundtrip for our event and our event only we deeply appreciate your time, your inspiring performance, and your ability to captivate our small humble crowd. We hope to work with you guys in the future and will be watching each of you on a journey that is sure to end in a big following. Consider the entire RATW crew fans for life.
To "Lost in Sound" who traveled about 4 hours round trip for our event and our event only, who gave us an enormous discount and put on the single most professionally produced live show to ever hit Bibb County in my lifetime, thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Many of these artists have been performing for years and have never experienced what it is like to sound at their best. You guys are awesome. Not only will we be seeking your services again but we will spread the word as long as you guys are around.
To KeKe and her crew who jumped on board at the last minute when other acts could not live up to their obligation, thank you for starting our show off with one of the most inspiring performances of the day. We will be seeing you again soon.
To Gary Morris for his last minute commitment to the project in light of acts not living up to their obligations, we thank you for providing us with the spiritual lifting and humble sounds of your music. You will never know how much that meant to this cause and to our artists.
To Santa Claus who showed up in the heat and sat through the entire show with a faint amount of people to experience your charm, thank you for raging with us and making Christmas in June possible.
To Bibb County Commissioner Ricky Hubbard of Hubbard Electric who helped out with the power at the last minute when other things fell through we appreciate your service to this community.
To Daniel Payne, our Master of Ceremonies for fighting the heat, getting the word out, defending the cause, and for putting on a heck of a show.
To Victoria Hallman, Lulu Roman, Donna Douglas, Matt Murphy, Richard Dixon, Larry and Rita Griffin, Sherwood McMillan, Representative April Weaver, Matt Hartzell, Vicky Sievering, Tommie Carlee, Zack Sievering, Ryan Thompson, Russell Bamberg, Tracy Schwenter, Stefanie Elliot, Toni Russell, Donna Kornegay, Ashantis Harris, Helen Atkins, Janie Russell, Jeff Russell, Kenneth Watkins, Linda Renn, The Centreville Press, Southern Charm Catering, The Eoline Volunteer Fire Department, The Brierfield Volunteer Fire Department, The Bibb County Extension Office, The City of Brent, The Eoline Community, River Bridge Restaurant, The Haven, McMillan Tire, Hubbard Electric, Griffin Body Shop, This N That Productions, White Wash Productions, Jones' Marathon, Office Depot, JVC, Lost in Sound, WVUA-TV, Mary Calurso and the Birmingham News, ABC 33/40, G&H Building Supply, Bibb Supply, The Wild Flour, The Eoline Soap Box, and all the members of the Raging Volunteer Army who helped and those who showed up. THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING OUR CAUSE IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER YOUR COMMITMENT WAS A BLESSING!
To the performers: KeKe, Gary Morris, General Lee (Lance Kornegay, Brandon Hendrix, Ross Nichols), Justin Keys, Bret Dailey, Self Made (Chris Pence and Charlie Crew), Kellen (Green), Halfway to Hindsight (Rebekah, Ian, Tucker, and Mcalister), and David (White Wash) Coffin THANK YOU FOR RAGING AGAINST THE HEAT, THE WIND, AND PUTTING ON A FANTASTIC SHOW!
We would also like to personally thank Michael Ray Britt whose inability to perform was not for selfish reasons but for an unforseen family tragedy which happened on the day of the show. Our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.
We would also like to thank Hunter Lawley whose inability to perform was a mutual decision based upon a very hectic Saturday schedule. Hunter wanted to perform but with gigs at 3 p.m. in Hoover and 9 p.m. in Dadeville there was not a window that would have garaunteed him a spot. Also we thank Hunter for his donation of CDs and band memorabilia for our auctions/raffle.
And additional thanks to David Coffin for donating his own CDs for purchase which sold like hot cakes.
For the acts who were scheduled to perform at the live event but gave excuses rather than reasons or were too disorganized to let us know what was going on in advance, we thank you for your considerations and we wish you all the best in your future endeavors.
FINALLY...
To those who showed up to witness the event live, to those who truly wanted to attend but could not due to previous commitments or other unforeseen occurrences we thank you from the bottom of our hearts and hope you will look to attend upcoming RATW events in the future.