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The
Great Western Southern Gospel Fan Festival May 1-3, 2008 Savemart Center in Fresno, CA |
 By: Kat McVay |
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*I’d like to apologize for the delay in getting this article to you. Long story short, my laptop crashed and I have been unable to retrieve my article until this evening. So, it’s a little late, but better than never. Thank you for your understanding and enjoy!* Another year has come and gone, another tally made to the success of the Great Western Southern Gospel Fan Festival. I was so excited for this year’s events and now that I have returned home, I can truly say this was an awesome weekend of marvelous music, loads of laughter and fantastic fellowship with my old friends and the pleasure of making new ones! I want to say a HUGE thank you to The Hoppers, Les Beasley and everyone who worked tirelessly to bring such a wonderful weekend of music to our area. I am thankful for your commitment to delivering a southern gospel music event of this magnitude to California and I am confident it will continue to grow as the years go on. Well, let me share my experience of the weekend with you. Thursday evening was the kick off to another year for the Great Western Southern Gospel Fan Festival, or as I like to refer to it, Fan Fest. I could feel my excitement swelling as I entered the Savemart Center and walked around to see the tables set up with all of the different artist’s products. It was obvious to me that the people who were also in attendance were buzzing with excitement as well. Since to have an event which hosts as many artists as this does in our area can only be compared to a Gaither Homecoming concert. But as I’ve said in the past, the great thing about the Fan Fest is it not only features great groups from the east, but it also showcases groups from the west as well. Several groups performed and did a fantastic job of beginning the weekend’s activities. It was apparent from where I was sitting that everyone around me was very involved and plugged in to the concert and the artists on the stage. Many were singing along and clapping with the rhythm, well, some were clapping with the rhythm. Others were just clapping, but they were having a great time! The highlight of the evening for me had to be the Herb Henry Family’s closing song which was Lookin’ For A City and The Hoppers came on the stage to help them finish it out. Then the Riverdale Children’s Choir joined the Hoppers on stage to sing Jerusalem, a favorite song of mine. One of the best parts of attending a concert event like this is the opportunity to meet so many new people and make new friends. I was able to add BJ Speer and Stone Dartt to my list of new friends. Both these guys are members of The Dartts based out of Napa, Ca but will be relocating to Nashville very soon. This group is probably best known for Tracy Dartt who was the writer of the song God On The Mountain recorded by several prominent artists in the Southern Gospel industry. Check out their website at www.darttmusic.com for their music and learn more about this family group. Friday afternoon offered a relaxed environment and starting with The Best of the West hosted by Brandon Beene and featured several groups from all across the West. It also introduced me to a new character I had yet to know of. Jamey Ragle is an evangelist based out of Georgia and has a no-nonsense way about his humor yet he has a passion when speaking of his love for the Lord and for reaching out to lost and hurting people and I was blessed by his time on stage. (Jamey Ragle - www.jameyragle.org ) The afternoon also had a Sing-a-long hosted by Gerald Wolfe of Greater Vision and it was in the style of the Stamps-Baxter School of Music way of leading a sing-a-long. Members from Legacy 5, Greater Vision, the Hoppers and Dixie Melody Boys created a semi-choir on stage to encourage the audience participation. Gerald ended the Sing-a-long session with Amazing Grace and the hundreds of voices that filled the auditorium sounded like what I would imagine a small taste of Heaven will be like. It was beautiful and reminded me why gospel music is so loved. I sure enjoyed singing the old timey hymns and it took me back to being a child singing out of the Heavenly Highway Hymnal on a Sunday morning. Saturday, however, stands out in my mind as my favorite day of all. All around I enjoyed myself immensely and this day I was able to meet several new people while catching up with old friends as well. The Beene Family was among the list of artists who made the trek to California and they are old friends of mine. This family group is made up of three brothers; Landon, Shandon, Brandon and Chrysta, the wife of Brandon Beene. They are always a favorite to the West Coast being that their roots bring them back to this area and their friends, family and fans always love seeing them when they come. Keep eyes out for a future article featuring the Beene family. (www.thebeenefamily.com) Traveling with the Beenes is a gentleman by the name of Paul White. He is a singer/song writer based out of Indiana and I thoroughly enjoyed meeting and having the opportunity to chat with Paul and get to know his ministry a little better, which includes reaching out to the elderly in care facilities. Check him out yourself at www.paulwhitemusic.com. Thanks Paul for your time and sharing you ministry with me. The Johnson Family was also there and this family group has many changes happening for their ministry and personal lives. Two of the daughters are engaged to be married which is changing the dynamics of the group. The family has decided to leave the road and focus their attentions in other directions and although I am disappointed for us who love their music, I am excited to see what doors God will open in their own personal journeys. I pray blessings over your new endeavors. To see a list of their final concert dates and future plans, go to www.johnsonfamilymusic.com. Moving on, I then had the opportunity to meet Jeff Pearles of the King’s Heralds and then heard the group sing several a capella arrangements during their time on Saturday evening. Some of you might recognize Jeff from a RobTV show he did with our very own Rob Patz! These guys have a great sound and tight harmonies! It was the first time for me to hear them in person but I will definitely remember their music. (www.theheralds.org) I also had the pleasure of receiving a “hard time” from Rob Shelton and Steven Cooper from the Dixie Melody Boys. Many of you are going to be familiar with this group as a whole and their music however if they are ever in your neck of the woods, I encourage you to go to their concerts and seek out these guys to say hello. They are a hoot and I know you will enjoy getting to talk with them. See when they are near you at www.dixiemelodyboys.com Thanks Rob and Steven for the chat and for making me laugh. I had a great time meeting you both! One of my favorite groups took the stage Saturday evening and as always, they were amazing. I am a fan of the Pfeifers, not only because they are so gifted musically, but they have a strong desire to minister through and with their music. They also have ministries outside of their traveling group and truly seek to serve God in all aspects of their lives. I am not aware of any other groups within the Southern Gospel industry that sing and also play brass instruments, which also sets this group apart. I really encourage you to check them out at www.pfeifers.com. The weekend was packed with loads of events for everyone to participate in and amazing music to tickle your ears. So many great groups to listen to and meet, I didn’t want it to end! But I knew it must and all the groups had new roads to travel and dates to fill. All in all, the resounding response from those I spoke to was that the southern gospel pulse is beating on the West Coast. The fans are true-blue, die hard, willing to go the extra mile, fans. I know the groups appreciated the support they received from all those who attended. To check out all the groups who were a part of the weekend’s events, I’ve listed their websites below. Thanks to all who worked so hard to make this weekend a success and I am truly looking forward to next year’s event. I have no doubt that it will be bigger and better than this year. I pray blessings on the ministries of all the groups who took the time to come to the Fan Fest and shared their music with us. Until next month, be blessed! The Hoppers –
www.thehoppers.com
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