As of May 28, the Pavilion at Heritage Park, better known as the Farmers Market, is completely ready for use. From the lights in the rafters to the natural concrete floor, the place exudes practicality with a festive twist.
The stage, back dropped with a gigantic American flag, was framed by the cedar siding on the back wall. Commissioner Danny Cooke from the Union County Opry welcomed hundreds to the pavilion to eat Buddy’s Bar-B-Q and enjoy music by Flashback and Authentic Unlimited.
Commissioner Sydney Jessee Jr. reminded us of the significance of Memorial Day in his prayer and Commissioner Debra Keck greeted everyone with her warm, friendly smile. Patrick Hurley related the 12-year history of the Farmers Market and thanked the many people who worked to make the market a reality including the Union County Commission, Mayor Jason Bailey, Shannon Dewitt of UT Extension Union County and the Farmers Market Board led by Manager Jody Smith, President Donna Riddle and Rick Riddle.
Flashback, whose most recent appearance was the Union County Heritage Festival in October 2021. performed most of the music from their latest album, Foxhounds and Fiddles, which is the title song. Flashback boasts Union County’s own Stuart Wyrick on banjo, Don Rigsby on mandolin, Richard Bennett on guitar and Curt Chapman on bass. Bennett’s vocals backed up by the other voices and absolutely magical bluegrass music offered pure bluegrass bliss for a solid hour.
A real treat was when Don Rigsby’s young son joined him on stage to showcase his guitar pickin’ skills. The band is anxious to entertain and can be contacted at https://fbband.com/home. Fiddles and Foxhounds can also be purchased on the website.
The featured entertainment for the evening was a new band, Authentic Unlimited, formed from remnants of Doyle Lawson’s Quicksilver with some new additions. Authentic Unlimited debuted two new albums, one a performance of bluegrass and the other an offering of gospel. The band is anchored by Union County’s own Jerry Cole, who is the main singer-songwriter for the group.
Cole learned his harmony and guitar skills from his father and honed them with Betterway Quartet. Sharing lead vocalist is John Meader, a young singer with an awesome voice range who is also a gifted guitarist. Eli Johnston brings his banjo picking from Branson, Missouri. Jesse Brock from Kentucky adds mandolin and Stephen Burwell from Texas rounds out the group on fiddle.
Cole, Johnston and Burwell toured for several years with Lawson’s Quicksilver and played one of their last performances at the Union County Opry before Doyle retired in 2021. Authentic Unlimited entertained the crowd with Long Gone, Before You Miss Me, as well as gospel originals from Jerry Cole.
Their relaxed down-home humor added to the crowd’s pleasure and truly brought the spirit and the toe-tapping music home. The band offered some of the best harmony anywhere. Authentic Unlimited is on tour in several states and returns to the Dumplin Valley Bluegrass Festival in Kodak on September 16, 2022. Their website, https://www.authenticunlimitedband.com/ has their complete tour and the CD’s.
The event was a cooperative effort between the Farmers Market, the Union County Opry and the Union County Chamber of Commerce. Attendees got a sneak peek of the commercial kitchen, the classroom, and the bathroom facilities, which are scheduled to open in late June. Costs for the public space rentals are still being decided.
The entire facility was built with grants and money from a sale of some county property in Luttrell. The opening event was made possible by the use of tourism funds from the occupancy tax. The Farmers Market is open to the public every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. through October. During summer, farm products are offered on Wednesday from 4 to 6 p.m.
The market has children’s activities as well as promotions for area nonprofits and food trucks. Union County Business and Professional will have a bring-your-own picnic lunch at noon at the pavilion for the member meeting on Tuesday, June 14.