This Release was posted on Jake Owen‘s Facebook Page a little while ago….
Photo by Leslie Paczosa
Hometown Benefit Concert to be Held Saturday, April 7, 2012
at the Citrus Bowl/Billy Livings Field at Vero Beach High School
Proceeds to Benefit the Mardy Fish Foundation and Jake Owen Foundation
Vero Beach, Fla. – The Jake Owen Concert, a highlight of Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest to Benefit the Mardy Fish Foundation and Jake Owen Foundation, has been rescheduled and will be held Saturday, April 7, 2012, at 8:00 p.m. at the Citrus Bowl/Billy Livings Field at Vero Beach High School in Vero Beach, Florida.
RCA Nashville recording artist Jake Owen will take a break from a busy tour schedule to return to his hometown once again to delight the local fans and raise funds for charity. 2011 was a banner year for Owen. His third studio album, Barefoot Blue Jean Night, reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Albums chart, and he achieved the first Platinum certified single of his career with “Barefoot Blue Jean Night” and the first Gold certified single of his career with “Eight Second Ride.” Owen is climbing the charts again in 2012, with his new single “Alone With You” currently No. 21 on Billboard’s Country charts.
Since the cancellation of the original Concert date, the Jake Owen Foundation has worked to secure a date as quickly as possible that is compatible with Owen’s schedule and that of the production team, while ensuring that the Concert is kept in Vero Beach, at a venue that can comfortably accommodate all attendees. All tickets issued for the original date of the Concert will be valid for the rescheduled date. All tickets that were held at Will Call for the original date will be available at Will Call on the rescheduled date. To arrange for Will Call tickets to be mailed, or for questions regarding ticketing, please phone Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest’s ticketing service at 866.333.7623.
The sixth annual Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest began in Vero Beach, Florida on December 9-10, 2011. Official Host Sponsor Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club hosted the Kids’ Tennis Clinic, Reception and Tennis Exhibition featuring Event Host Mardy Fish, ATP Professional Sam Querrey, Tennis Legend Serena Williams, World No. 1 Doubles Team Bob and Mike Bryan, the “Bryan Brothers,” and WTA rising star Melanie Oudin. The Jake Owen Concert was scheduled to be held at the Historic Holman Stadium at Vero Beach Sports Village, but was canceled due to public safety concerns caused by inclement weather. The Concert will increase awareness and raise revenues for the Foundations’ mission to assist youth in Indian River County.
To date, more than 2,000 students at 13 elementary schools participate in the Mardy Fish Foundation Achievable Dreams After School and Club Programs, and more than 1,000 children participate in Mardy’s Kids on Court. The Jake Owen Foundation also continues to assist youth who are battling childhood diseases through St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
The Mardy Fish Foundation and Jake Owen Foundation are pleased to announce that despite weather challenges, with the support of the sponsors and the Indian River County community, each activity of the event was sold out and Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest raised more than $145,000 through sponsorships and revenue from the Tennis Exhibition and Reception held on December 9. Despite the rescheduling of the Concert, the 2011 Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest is the most successful event in the history of the annual fundraiser for the Mardy Fish Foundation and Jake Owen Foundation.
“I am so excited to announce the new Concert date,” said Owen. “I apologize to everyone that was inconvenienced by the rescheduling of the Concert. I want to thank you all for your patience during this process. We have worked as quickly as we could to make this announcement, but we needed to make sure that we kept the Concert in Vero Beach, at a venue that was available and would accommodate the sold out crowd.”
Information regarding parking, concessions and other event details will be announced in the coming weeks.
About Mardy Fish
Vero Beach native Mardy Fish is currently ranked No. 8 on the ATP World Tour and recently competed in the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals for the first time in his career. Fish had a career-best season in 2011, winning the US Open Series in August and reaching the highest ranking of his career at No. 7 in the world. Fish won the Atlanta Tennis Championships for the second consecutive year, and reached the finals in Los Angeles and Montreal. He also reached the semifinals in Key Biscayne, third round at the French Open, quarterfinals at Wimbledon, and fourth round at the US Open. Over the course of his career he has won six singles titles and eight doubles titles while defeating players such as Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Roddick, Andy Murray and in doubles Novak Djokovic. Fish was a Silver Medalist at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. In addition to representing his country at the Olympics, Fish has been an important member of the U.S. Davis Cup team during the past decade. For more information on Mardy Fish, visit www.mardytennis.com and follow him on Twitter @MardyFish.
About Jake Owen
Jake Owen, also a Vero Beach native, is a Grammy, CMA, ACM and CMT award-nominated artist who was named the 2009 Top New Male Vocalist by the Academy of Country Music. Following the success of his debut album, Startin’ with Me, Owen’s 2009 release Easy Does It debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart. Barefoot Blue Jean Nightis the next chapter in Owen’s successful recording career. The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard chart, and the first single “Barefoot Blue Jean Night,” became the first RIAA Platinum-certified hit of Owen’s career, with over 1M copies sold. In addition to headlining his own shows, Owen has toured with some of the biggest names in country music, including Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney, Alan Jackson, Brad Paisley, Sugarland, Carrie Underwood, and Keith Urban. For information and tour dates, see www.jakeowen.net and follow him on Twitter @JakeOwen.
About the Mardy Fish Foundation
The Mardy Fish Foundation mission is to provide children access to after school exercise, nutritional and enrichment programs in a safe environment to prepare them for healthy, productive and successful lives so they can achieve their dreams. Since its establishment in 2006, the Mardy Fish Foundation has opened after school programs in 13 elementary schools benefiting more than 2,000 students in Indian River County. The programs provide a place for children to go and partake in various activities that will help them better themselves using sports, music, art, and dance. In 2009, the Foundation initiated another city-wide program, Mardy’s Kids on Courts, that allows local youth to improve their tennis skills through instruction and competition while instilling the many life lessons tennis has to offer. For more information on the Mardy Fish Foundation, visit www.mardyfishfoundation.org.
About the Jake Owen Foundation
Founded in 2010, the Jake Owen Foundation was created to offer its support on a national level to children battling cancer and other childhood diseases while also lending its support to the Mardy Fish Foundation and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, TN, who are benefiting from the extensive research and patient-care the hospital provides. Once a patient is accepted, St. Jude covers all the medical costs beyond those its mission to assist youth in Owen’s hometown area of Indian River County, FL. Through Jake’s association within the country music community, he has had the opportunity to visit children and families at St. Jude covered by insurance, and families without insurance are never asked to pay. St. Jude also provides transportation, lodging, and meals for one parent and child. For more information, visit www.jakeowen.net/charity.
About the Event Sponsors
Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest continues to gain the support of many companies and individuals, including The McLaughlin Family as the Reception Sponsor. The Event Host Sponsor is Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club, and the Concert Venue Sponsor is Vero Beach Sports Village. Official Sponsors are Clear Channel – WAVE 92.7 and OLDIES 103.7, K-Swiss, Pelican Outdoor, Proctor Construction, SpringHill Suites by Marriott, and Vero Beach Magazine.
About C & H Events, Inc.
C & H Events, Inc. is a full-service event management and marketing company based in Boca Raton, Fla., offering more than 50 years combined experience in event management and marketing, meeting planning, corporate promotions, sports marketing, public relations and corporate hospitality. Among the tennis events C & H Events manages in addition to Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest, is Swingtime — A Pro-Celebrity Pro-Am Tennis & Golf Tournament. Please visit www.chevents.com for further details about C & H Events.