The 10th annual Citizens for Progress charity concert will be held Saturday, April 21, beginning at 7 p.m. at the historic downtown Park Theatre.
Featured for this concert is country music star Steve Wariner, a four-time Grammy winner with 14 No. 1 songs and more than 50 singles on the Billboard charts. Wariner is a truly great guitarist, and an accomplished songwriter.
There is a strong tie to McMinnville. Steve started his career playing a bass guitar for the Dottie West band. Wariner is arguably the biggest star to come to McMinnville in many years.
There are both reserved and general admission seats for this concert, including the new balcony seats. Ticket prices are $35 (reserved) and $25 (general admission) and are available at the downtown Chamber of Commerce (473-6611). It is hoped this will be a sellout event.
Buying tickets early is recommended. The McMinnville Board of Aldermen has approved concert patrons parking in the Blue Building parking lot (front, side, and rear). It is expected that two courtesy vans will shuttle patrons from this parking area up to the Park Theater before and after the concert.
Steve Wariner’s best known songs are “Holes in the Floor of Heaven” (Grammy winner for Song of the Year), “Kansas City Lights,” “The Hand that Rocks the Cradle,” and “All Roads Lead to You.”
Steve was cited by Chet Atkins as one of the six best guitar players in the world. Steve plays the bass, steel, acoustic, electric, and Dobro guitars. Steve became a member of the Grand Ole Opry in 1996, was inducted into the Music City Walk of Fame in Nashville in 2008, and the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame in 2011.
Steve is 62 years young, married to wife Caryn, and has two sons. The family lives near Nashville in Franklin. Steve is known as a great guitar player and a genuinely nice guy.
The Citizens for Progress (CFP) Scholarship Fund was begun in July 2007 to provide a bridge to higher education for our youth. Since 2007, over $800,000 has been raised and over $650,000 awarded to students primarily for classes at TCAT and Motlow-McMinnville.
CFP preceded TN Promise by eight years. With the advent of TN Promise and TN Reconnect, CFP is aimed today at supporting the rapid expansion of dual enrollment classes at WCHS. Over 200 students are now taking dual enrollment.
TN Promise does not provide funds for dual enrollment. CFP also funds specialty training, such as a STEM camp for 72 students during the 2017 summer. Fundraising for the CFP Fund includes private donations, public donations, and events like this concert. CFP has now helped over 700 students with financial aid. Many have been first in their families to go onto higher education.
Our own Thomas B. Vaughn will be the concert emcee. Thomas is an acquaintance of Steve Wariner and will introduce him. The WCHS select choir will sing the national anthem. This will be a most memorable event. We recommend buying tickets early. Come to be lavishly entertained.
