Evan Dickerson with Echo Valley at the first Musicians for Autism Awareness show, August 26, 2023
The first ever Bluegrass Musicians for Autism Awareness show was held this past weekend in New Carlisle, OH, hosted and organized by popular online podcaster and broadcaster, Evan Dickerson. As a person with autism, one of several in his family, Evan was particularly interested in seeing this event come to be, and he says that he was delighted at the response.
They were able to hold the initial one-day festival at Evans Family Ranch, as Ed Evans is a big supporter of Dickerson and his efforts to promote bluegrass music, and show the wider world just how much people with autism can accomplish, given the chance.
Evan’s father, Wayne, was also involved with setting up the show, booking the bands, arranging for a stage, selling tickets, and such, but this was his son’s project from the start. Evan already has a presence in the bluegrass world though his video podcast, The Evan Dickerson Bluegrass Talk Show, and everyone who meets him is immediately struck by his sincerity and desire to be a part of the bluegrass music business.
He even got to perform on stage with Hammertowne.
While this first running of Bluegrass Musicians for Autism Awareness failed to turn a profit, Dickerson told us that wasn’t the goal.
“It was never our intention to raise money, it was about Awareness, education and inclusion. We were successful in that regard.”
They plan on holding this event again next year.
“We absolutely plan to do it again. Why wouldn’t we?”
Wayne Dickerson was also happy with how things turned out.
“We are the first festival for Autism Awareness. We had a great lineup of 14 bands, many of which donated their talents. We were covered by the ABC/Fox affiliate out of the Dayton area.”
You can keep up with Evan Dickerson through his Facebook page, or look him up this weekend at SamJam, where he’ll be in attendance Friday through Sunday. He’s hard to miss, even in a crowd.
Well done Evan!
