Country music artist and Ocean City native Jimmy Charles returns for a second year to perform his annual benefit concert for Coastal Hospice. The free “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” concert will be held on Thursday, Dec. 17 from 6 to 10 p.m. at the Ocean Pines Yacht Club.
Local singer Sara Ann will open the show. The event will include a Chinese auction, a 50/50 raffle and a special appearance by Santa.
Reservations at the Yacht Club are suggested and may be made by calling 410-641-7501. Doors open at 5 p.m.
The concert is free to the public, but donations are encouraged to benefit Coastal Hospice.
Last year, Coastal Hospice provided more than $650,000 in charity care to patients who had no ability to pay. Donations made at the concert will help fund the hospice’s charity care and also honor the donor’s loved one, whose named will be printed on an angel ornament and hung on a Coastal Hospice Angel Tree.
Charles chose Coastal Hospice for the benefit, because the local non-profit cared for his grandmother. The musician grew up in Ocean City — he was born James Charles Krabbe — and graduated from Stephen Decatur High School and Towson University.
“I wanted to target an organization that was local to my home on the Eastern Shore,” Charles said. “It takes some really special people to do what Coastal Hospice does. They were a blessing to us, and now it is time that I give back to them.
“And, for me, there’s nothing like the love and support you feel from your own hometown crowd.”
Charles, who lives in Nashville and is actively involved in charity work, is a national CMT/GAC recording artist just off a national tour promoting his hit single, “Superman,” a song he wrote that spreads awareness about prostate cancer. The “Superman” video can be viewed at www.cmt.com/videos/jimmy-charles/1235008/superman.jhtml.
The musician has also written an original Christmas song, “Broke for Christmas,” that can be viewed at https://youtu.be/406XFTpybfE.
Charles had an impressive beginning to his professional music career as a Season 9 contestant on the TV show American Idol where he earned a golden ticket to Hollywood. He has worked with some of the biggest names in country music, including Lady Antebellum, Montgomery Gentry, Kip Moore and Kacey Musgraves.
More information about Jimmy Charles and his music is available at www.jimmycharlesmusic.com.
Founded in 1980, Coastal Hospice is a nonprofit health care organization that cares for individuals facing life-limiting conditions.
