The first PraiseFest fills Gunn Park on Saturday with tournaments, food trucks and a concert by Christian recording artist Tasha Layton. Proceeds benefit Core Community - Bourbon County, a program that helps residents work their way out of poverty.
The event is a partnership between Core and the City of Fort Scott. Deana Betts, Core's Southeast Kansas regional coordinator, said she had wanted to hold a fundraiser like it for about a decade.
Betts said she pictured a family-friendly community event that would raise money for Core and share the stories of the people it serves.
"We could rally the community, the family-friendly way, in the name of Jesus, to raise funds for Core," Betts said.
The festival took shape during a meeting with Fort Scott City Manager Brad Matkin and Rachel Carpenter, a member of Core's advisory council. Betts said Matkin raised the idea of a Christian concert that would benefit Core, with city support.
The city worked through a booking agency with a list of available artists. Betts said she was asked to choose.
Betts said Layton's name stood out each time she went through the list. Layton has had three No. 1 singles on Christian radio.
The original booking came in above budget, Betts said, and Layton's team offered a scaled-down version of her show. The sound requirements still added cost, and organizers considered looking at other artists.
"I just feel like she's the one," Betts said she told Carpenter.
Organizers worked out the sound costs, and a contract was signed. Layton performs from 6 to 7:30 p.m.
Betts has been with Core for two years. She moved to the area when her husband became pastor of a local church in Frontenac, and she recently added the regional coordinator role.
Core classes meet weekly, with a free meal and free child care before class. Participants are called Core Leaders, which Betts said reflects that they are leading themselves out of poverty.
"Poverty is all about barriers," Betts said. "A lot of people just give up because they just see barriers all over and they can't get past them."
Betts said 10% of all money Core raises goes into a benevolence fund. Coach Jalaine Myers uses the fund to help Core Leaders get past specific barriers and teaches them how to keep those problems from coming back.
Core Leaders who graduate stay connected through a second phase of the program. Betts said the program continues to offer them resources.
Core has chapters in 15 Kansas counties. The first class in Crawford County is set to begin at a church in Girard in spring 2027.
Betts said a new chapter starts with local champions who raise $10,000 and form an advisory council. Once that money is raised, the chapter can hire a liaison, a process Betts said takes 18 months to two years.
An informational meeting for other Southeast Kansas counties is scheduled for Nov. 2. Betts said the area has drawn more interest than Core has seen in other parts of the state.
PraiseFest's stage lineup includes two women who have gone through the Redemption House, a faith-based recovery home in Fort Scott. Founder Jenni Simhiser will share her testimony at 3:30 p.m.
Megan Thieman, who won Recovery Idol on Sept. 19 in Wichita, performs at 5 p.m. Thieman took Core classes while living at the Redemption House.
Higher Ground, a worship band of five Ozark Christian College students, opens the stage at 3 p.m. and returns after Simhiser's testimony. Guest speaker David Case will speak about poverty at 4:30 p.m.
The day starts at 9 a.m. with a disc golf round and a cornhole tournament, with registration at 8:30 a.m. The Tri-Yak-A-Thon, a run, bike and kayak race organized by Frank Halsey, starts at noon.
A fishing derby begins at 1 p.m., with equipment provided and no age limit. Food trucks, vendors and a kids' zone open at 2 p.m.
Carpenter is coordinating vendors, and Heather Wilson is coordinating food vendors. Betts said recruiting vendors has been a challenge, as it often is for a first-year event.
"When you're not on a vendor's radar, you know, it takes a couple years to build that credibility," Betts said.
Core Leaders will run a lemonade stand at the festival, with proceeds going to the program.
Wristbands for the stage and kids' zone are $10, and children 5 and under get in free. Wristbands will be sold at the event.
Betts said she hopes to make PraiseFest an annual event. That decision will come after Saturday's festival.
