The Lyme in the South Music Fest is a benefit concert & festival dedicated to the prevention, awareness and cure of Lyme Disease and other tick-borne illnesses that have become the fastest-growing infectious diseases in the country.

The event is schedule for Saturday, May 17 at River City Brewing Company in Jacksonville, FL beginning at 3 p.m.

The music line-up features Pat DiNizio, frontman of the Smithereens, famous for such hits as "Blood & Roses," "Behind the Wall of Sleep," "Girl Like You," and "Only a Memory." Pat will be playing acoustic versions of these songs as well as tunes from his solo releases.

Also featured is Les Stroud from the "Survivorman" TV series. Les will be playing acoustic guitar & harmonica and will also be educating on tick awareness and prevention.

Rounding out the bill is Houston-native Alisa Turner who will be playing her breakout hit "Breathing" about her own struggles with Lyme Disease. Also performing is Gregg Kirk of The Zen Engines who will be playing acoustic versions of his band's material, all inspired by his healing journeys through Lyme Disease.

Speakers include Katina Makris (Lyme activist & author of "Out of the Woods"), Dr. Kerry Clark (a University of North Florida professor of epidemiology and environmental health who has published ground-breaking studies confirming Lyme in the South), and Lyme-literate physician Dr. Shirley Hartman.

Proceeds from Lyme in the South Music Fest will support the tick-borne disease research initiatives of Dr. Kerry Clark as well as the Tick-Borne Disease Alliance (TBDA) and Florida Lyme Disease Association ("FLDA," FKA Northeast Florida Lyme Association). TBDA and FLDA are tax-exempt 501(c)(3) charitable organizations.

Those suffering from Lyme Disease in the south face significant challenges due to both misinformation and poor awareness. Experts believe that tick-borne disease cases in the South are vastly underestimated because existing tests only include a single strain, when several strains have been found to infect humans in southern states. Additionally, states in the south do not receive federal funding for Lyme Disease surveillance, resulting in limited resources to track cases. Due to the artificially-low reported cases, doctors and patients are led to believe that Lyme is rare in the southern US and do not consider it as part of the differential diagnosis. Alternatively, health care providers are quick to dismiss CDC positive tests for Lyme as "false positives", and those cases are therefore not counted. Sadly, patients in the south are routinely condemned to unnecessary suffering because they are denied the opportunity for early diagnosis, along with safe, efficacious treatments.

The goal of the Lyme in the South Music Fest is to drive awareness, provide recommendations on prevention, and to educate on the many symptoms of Lyme Disease and other tick-borne infections.

If you are an interested promoter, band, potential sponsor, exhibitor or are simply interested in helping the cause, please contact us. The Ticked Off Music Fest hopes to be holding future events in Washington D.C., New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and Connecticut.

Sponsored by: