The Grady County community will have an opportunity to come together for some Christmas cheer on Tuesday evening, Dec. 15.
The Cairo City Council unanimously approved a special event permit for the Washington Middle School Band to hold its annual Christmas concert at Davis Park beginning at 6 p.m.
The band typically performs in the school gymnasium, but due to COVID-19 and the need to social distance, school officials made application for the concert to be an open-air concert at the city park.
“We are encouraging everyone to bring their lawn chairs and come out to enjoy the concert at the park where there is plenty of room to social distance,” said Michael Best, W.M.S. principal.
Mayor Howard Thrower III, asked how the band would be social distanced. W.M.S. band director Patrick Ballew said he believed he could spread out his band under the pavilion at the park to provide sufficient distance. He said if necessary, the percussion could be positioned just outside the pavilion.
Ballew said that his students were yearning for normalcy and his hope is that being able to have the concert before a live audience would achieve that goal.
“I appreciate you doing it,” Mayor Thrower said.
