DOING IT HIS WAY: An Evening for ABAC will feature the sounds of Frank Sinatra

TIFTON — The sounds of Sinatra will fill the air at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College’s annual fundraising dinner and concert.

Mark Randisi and The Motor City Horns will perform at An Evening for ABAC at 6 p.m. March 3 at the University of Georgia Tifton Campus Conference Center.

Wayne Jones, director of the ABAC Arts Connection, coordinates the evening for the ABAC Foundation, which has sponsored the annual event for 43 years. Singer Anita Bryant starred in 1972 in a dinner and show that came to be known as Dollars for Scholars. He said he expects this year’s show to be one of the best in the series.

“If you close your eyes, you’ll hear a familiar timbre and tone this year,” Jones said. “It will sound as if the Chairman of the Board himself is in the room, but it’s really the voice of Mark Randisi, keeping the sounds of Sinatra alive.

“What he does is an incredible tribute to Frank Sinatra, not just an imitation. His devotion to the music is apparent, and you’ll be swept up in the emotion he brings to this performance.”

This is the second year that the show moved just off the ABAC campus to the UGA Tifton center. That decision to move to the larger venue was made after the 2015 show in which Katie Deal, who performs in the style of Patsy Cline, filled up all 400 seats available at the ABAC’s Gressette Gymnasium in 2015.

Jones said the move also has allowed the foundation to add some extras for those who attend.

“We moved it to the Conference Center so we could have more space, and we added a lot of additional activities for the evening as well,” Jones said. “Every guest was treated like a genuine VIP. From valet parking and the red carpet through the dance floors on each side of the stage, I think it was a night everyone really enjoyed.”

A cocktail hour, a silent auction, and a live auction in an indoor garden party atmosphere added glitter to a night which has been called “the social event of the year” for the Tift area.

“Our patrons trust they are in for a great evening and great entertainment,” Jones said. “Our whole purpose is to benefit student scholarships. That’s what folks are spending their money for, to help students go to college.”

ABAC students will be the beneficiaries.

“During the past six years, we have raised almost $300,000 for student scholarships,” Jones said. “Our intent is to raise $100,000 at An Evening for ABAC in 2017 for the students. Since we are a four-year institution now, we have twice the amount of need.

“Once we started graduating students with bachelor’s degrees, we instantly increased the need for more scholarship funds. I believe the 2017 event will take us to an entirely new level.”

Artists who have performed through the years have included Debbie Reynolds, Albany’s Ray Stevens, Roy Clark, Ronnie Milsap, Barbara Mandrell, Shirley Jones, Mel Tillis, Pat Boone, The Temptations, Helen Reddy and Trisha Yearwood, Monticello native with family ties in Tifton.

Tickets are $125 for individuals and $225 for couples. A reserved table for eight is $1,500. A portion of the ticket price is tax deductible.

Sponsorship levels include Gold ($2,500, which sponsors one scholarship), Platinum ($5,000 for two scholarships), Titanium ($7,500 for three scholarships) and Presidential ($10,000 for four scholarships).

For tickets, contact (229) 391-4895 or visit www.abac.edu/aneveningforabac.