Two charitable organizations, U.S. Marine Corps Reserves Toys for Tots Program, Detachment 1095 and the Boys and Girls Club of Glasgow-Barren County, plus military families at Fort Knox, will benefit from Black Stone Cherry’s third annual concert Thanksgiving weekend.

The two-day event is set to begin at 6:30 p.m. at the Cave City Convention Center.

“The reasons for the shows are simple,” said Jon Lawhon, bassist. “Our community means the world to us. We were raised here and we will raise our own children here as well. It breaks our hearts to think there are kids out there that might not have a memorable Christmas.”

Performing Friday night along with BSC will be The Kentucky HeadHunters and local groups Otis and Rufus Huff. Taking the stage Saturday night will be BSC and The Kentucky HeadHunters along with Purpose and WillowShade.

The benefit concert is a tradition that began in the late 1960s and is being carried on by Black Stone Cherry.

“We are so honored to put on our annual benefit show for the third year in a row,” said John Fred Young, drummer for BSC. “It is our chance to give back to our community and to have a couple of great nights of rock ’n’ roll. We send a huge thank you out to all the people and families who make it out every year. We plan to continue doing this great concert each year.”

Young is the son of Richard Young, who plays rhythm guitar for The Kentucky HeadHunters.

“This kind of makes the holidays for the HeadHunters and Black Stone Cherry,” said Richard Young. “It’s a lot of fun for me and my brother and all the HeadHunters, I guess me more than anything because I get to do a show with my son’s band.”

The first show Richard Young played with his brother, Fred, Greg Martin and Anthony Kenney was the 1968 Toys for Tots show hosted by US Inc. at the National Guard Armory.

“The event has a special place in our hearts,” said guitarist Greg Martin. “Friday night I will be pulling double duty with my side band Rufus Huff. This is the first show Rufus Huff has played locally since the CD was released in April. We’ll be playing songs from the debut CD, plus songs from an upcoming JJ Cale Tribute to be released in 2010 on Zoho. It’s a wonderful cause, it’s all about the kids.”

Members of Rufus Huff are Martin, Dean Smith, Chris Hardesty and Jarrod England.

Martin called the benefit concert a “family event,” not just because of the Youngs will be performing together, but also because Dean Smith, who plays with Rufus Huff, will get to perform with his son’s band, Otis.

Proceeds from the concert will be divided among the three charities.

“We are happy to involve the Toys for Tots with concert events, which is a partnership you don’t see a lot these days,” said Ben Wells, guitarist for BSC. “We admire the Marines and anyone involved with their dedication to this great organization.”

Toys for Tots is a worldwide effort sponsored by the Marine Corps Reserves.

“The goal is to see needy children receive new toys for Christmas,” said Tom Harris with Marine Corps League Detachment 1095, which serves a 10-county area in southcentral Kentucky.

The Marine Corps League has placed collection boxes at various businesses in the area to collect toys. The organization’s Christmas program is for children ranging in age from birth to 14. While there’s never a shortage of toys for the younger children, there is often a lack of toys for older children, Harris said.

“What our concert does for us is it helps fill the gaps,” he said. “This concert is a blessing in that respect.”

BSC’s goal is to add a new charity each year. Last year the concert benefitted Toys for Tots and the Boys and Girls Club of Glasgow-Barren County.

“We are so thankful for them including us,” said Kelly Jenkins with the Boys and Girls Club of Glasgow-Barren County. “It provides us with a way to give our kids a Christmas they otherwise wouldn’t have. We are so thankful for this.”

The benefit concert generated enough money last year that the band was able to donate “several thousand dollars to both Toys for Tots and Boys for Girls Club,” said Wells. “We are able to give many, many families around the southern Kentucky area toys for Christmas, canned food items and we were able to take the great kids from the Boys and Girls Club Christmas shopping, which is something we still talk about today and look forward to doing again this year.”

BSC will take 60 children from the Boys and Girls Club shopping for Christmas on Dec. 15. The band also gave the Boys and Girls Club tickets so teenage members of the club can attend the concert Friday night, she said.

The latest charity to benefit from the concert will be military families at Fort Knox.

“Hopefully, we can add new charities or groups each year,” Wells said. “We encourage people to bring a non-perishable canned food item when you come to the show to help us help others.”

Tickets to the concert are $15 each night with a canned food item. Tickets can be purchased at the Cave City Convention Center, Sunshyn Dazys in Edmonton, George J’s On The Square in Glasgow and Chuck’s Liquors in Bowling Green.