This Friday, several of Lafayette’s main musicians will take the stage at Parc International for Lafayette’s Road to Recovery Concert, which will raise awareness for mental illness in the community as well as honor the victims and families affected by the Grand Theatre shooting.
Local event producer Chris Foreman is organizing the concert along with his wife Rachel and local chef extraordinaire Patrick Mould.
"We just wanted to try and do something to spread public awareness for mental health," says Mould. "We wanted to bring some awareness to the issue that we feel has been defunded drastically over the years and just do anything we can to bring it to people’s attention. I’m concerned with the long term ramifications of the shooting on the people of Lafayette. It’s a traumatic thing that’s happened and some people will deal with it and some people may not, so we just wanted to bring any sort of awareness we could to the issue."
Foreman said the idea for the concert initially came in response to the tragic shooting at the Grand Theatre last month, but after realizing that several memorials and vigils had already been established to help Lafayettans cope with the tragedy, the concert’s organizers decided to shift the focus to raising awareness for mental health and helping the victims and the community as a whole to finish the healing process.
“We decided to change the focus of the event to concentrate more on advocacy and awareness and education of mental illness,” says Foreman. “And after talking with a few of the families, they all agreed. So we shifted the focus to that and got with the Community Foundation of Acadiana who will be disbursing the funds. The main benefactor will be the National Alliance on Mental Illness.”
The stellar musical lineup includes performances from Joel Martin, Blain Roy, Cupid, Keith Frank and Wayne Toups. There will also be hamburgers, hot dogs, soft drinks and beer available for purchase.
Admission to the event is a $10 minimum donation, however there will be a donation tent set up on site to accommodate patrons who wish to make a donation by credit card. And for those who are unable to attend the concert, donations will also be accepted online through the Community Foundation of Acadiana.
Lafayette’s Road to Recovery Concert begins Friday, Aug. 14, at 6 p.m. with music following at 6:30 p.m. at Parc International in Downtown Lafayette. For more information visit Road to Recovery Concert on Facebook.