Dierks Bentley gathers a crowd in downtown Fort Smith

 

story and photos by Ruby Dean
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Thousands gathered down at the Harry E. Kelley Park for the Festival on the Border to hear the tunes belted out by one of country’s top artists, Dierks Bentley. Patrons arrived as early as 4:30 p.m. to get a prime “seat” although the concert didn’t begin until 7:30 p.m. with the Randy Rogers Band taking the stage first.

The concert was the second night of concerts that began Thursday night and finishes up on Sunday with a performance by the Young Actors Guild’s “Hairspray.” All profits from this first ever event goes to Festival on the Border’s charities: Alzheimer’s Association’s Oklahoma/Arkansas Chapter, Bost Foundation., Children’s Emergency Shelter, First Tee of Fort Smith, the Gregory Kistler Treatment Center Inc., the Good Samaritan Clinic, Helping Hands for Children, the Make-A-Wish Foundation, the Donald W. Reynolds Cancer Support House and Making a Difference: One Kid at a Time.

Tickets for the event were $10 and could be bought weeks before the event, although tickets were still available at the gate and concert goers were buying them as late as up until the show started.

According to John McIntosh, “approximately 5,000 tickets had been pre-sold just for tonight’s (Sept. 9) show, and we expect a bigger crowd at tomorrow night’s event at UAFS where four bands will perform starting at 6 p.m.”

With the Fort Smith Classic not being held this year and the Celebrity Classic no longer a charitable fundraising event, McIntosh stated, “a group of volunteers representing both of these group events came up with the idea to have an event that was more accessible to the community and at an affordable cost to the public of $10. It is something all the community can enjoy.”

All the profit after cost of the event will go to the FOTB’s charities.

“It is hard to predict how much money will be made from this event as this is the first year ever to have it,” McIntosh stated.

Dierks Bentley was a hit for the young and old alike. Fans knew all of the songs and were encouraged by the singer to sing along with him. Most of the concert goers stayed up until the last song ended as others slowly dwindled out hoping to beat the traffic.