Albany Strong Fun Fest set for March 25 at Exchange Club Fairgrounds

ALBANY — As a way to help bring about community unity and strength, Albany Strong Fun Fest is planned for March 25 at the Exchange Club of Albany Fairgrounds, and includes an appearance by Albany native Josh Hunter, who is a contestant on the NBC singing competition “The Voice.”

The event, set for noon-7 p.m., is a “day of healing” that will celebrate the accomplishments of the many who volunteered their time to help with storm relief and recovery efforts. It is meant to serve as an opportunity for the Albany community to relax after the trauma brought on by the severe weather that hit in January.

The Albany Strong Fest is an event with a number of moving parts that came together fairly quickly after calls poured in from individuals and organizations interested in conducting a similar outreach.

“It is a day of healing for our community to have fun,” said Sherrell Byrd, one of the event organizers. “After the storms, we wanted to do something fun and relaxing.

“It is free and open to the public. People suffered a lot of loss, so we wanted to make it accessible to anybody.”

Byrd said the fest will include free food, music, resources for storm victims, as well as opportunities to drop off storm victim donations for those in need of donated items — including personal hygiene and household items — to pick up what has yet to be distributed.

The musical entertainment will include Hunter, a former Dougherty Comprehensive High School basketball player using the stage name JChosen, who is currently appearing on “The Voice.” He will be joined by artists in the Christian, country, R&B and hip-hop genres, Byrd said.

Albany Assistant Fire Chief Eugene Anderson said he thinks of the fest as an opportunity to “debrief” and come back to a sense of normalcy. He said chaplains will be on site along with officials from Aspire Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities Services to offer assistance.

“It lets them know they need to talk about it,” Anderson said. “They need to know there are other people out there experiencing the same thing. Talking has that healing effect to it.”

Anderson said he has been in contact with government officials, enlisting their help in boosting the event.

“I’m not looking at them for money, but I am looking for their constituents to be there,” he said.

Maryland Fried Chicken and Hunt Brothers Pizza will be among the food vendors, while the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Georgia Emergency Management Agency, Small Business Administration and Albany Relief and Recovery will be among the resources storm victims can take advantage of.

“FEMA will be leaving on March 27,” Byrd said. “This will be the last opportunity for those who have not spoken to FEMA or the SBA (to connect with those agencies).”

Individuals, groups and businesses in the Albany area are expected to be given awards that afternoon on the stage for their volunteerism following the storms. The awards will be in the form of trophies, plaques and branded medallions made from wood recovered in the storm debris.

“(The medallions) will be kind of be a memento to (the commitment they) made to Albany,” Byrd said.

A “kids zone” with bouncy houses will be available, along with concessions and an Easter egg hunt — the latter of which is meant to accommodate those who no longer have a safe place to take part in the annual spring tradition.

The event is being sponsored by the city of Albany, Dougherty County, iHeart Media and United Way of Southwest Georgia.

The Exchange Club Fairgrounds is located at 810 S. Westover Blvd. For more information on the event, contact Byrd at (229) 669-6506.