The annual Harvest of Hope festival in St. Johns County just unveiled this year’s lineup, which includes performances by Billy Bragg, The Mountain Goats, Man Man (pictured), Dr. Dog, Cymbals Eat Guitars and more than 100 others. Folio Weekly will likely be giving away some free tickets to the event, so watch our Facebook site (and become a fan) for more info. Here’s the full release:

The 2nd Annual Harvest Of Hope Fest Announces First Round Of Confirmations For Spring Break, March 12th-14^th 2010!

Diverse Music Festival To Benefit Migrant Farm Workers 

The second annual Harvest of Hope Fest (HOH Fest) has announced the initial lineup for their multiple-stage music festival that will take place March 12^th – 14^th in sunny St. Augustine, FL. The festival serves to raise awareness and provide financial support for the Harvest of Hope Foundation, a charity organization that aids migrant farm workers across the country.

HOH Fest is the first multi-day concert of the 2010 festival season and uniquely different than many other festivals that will be happening this year. Last year, over 17,000 attendees took in over 100 punk, indie-rock, hip-hop, alt-country, folk, and blues bands. 

This year’s line up showcases a diverse roster once again with national and international acts including Billy Bragg, Dr Dog, The Mountain Goats, Leatherface, Rogue Wave, Delta Spirit, Senses Fail, Anti-Flag, Dead Prez, Kimya Dawson, Samiam, Torche, Strike Anywhere, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Dr. Octagon AKA Kool Keith, Small Brown Bike, Portugal. the Man, Black Sheep, Danielson, Coalesce, Man Man, forgetters (Ex-Jawbreaker/ Against Me!), plus over 150 more artists joining together to raise awareness to the plight of migrant farm workers! Harvest of Hope Fest is the only festival of its kind that has such a large group of musicians donating their time and performances to charity. A full list of first round confirmations can be seen below. (more…)

A little while back, Discount Music on Jacksonville’s Westside offered free guitar or bass strings to anyone who brought in nonperishable food items as a donation to the North Florida Second Harvest Food Bank. The event was such a success, they’re doing it again. Bring your guitar or bass in (and at least one nonperishable food item) and get a free set of stings installed and tuned. National Free String Change Day is held throughout the day on Saturday, Nov. 14 at Discount Music, 1711 Blanding Blvd., Jacksonville. (Limit two sets per person while supplies last.) 738-7111.

— Posted by John E. Citrone

When Folio Weekly associate publisher Dave Brennan isn’t running around putting out fires at FW headquarters (don’t try to MapQuest us; our command center is located miles beneath the earth), he’s busy doing charitable work. In fact, just yesterday, he taped a segment for the infamous Watch Hound program, which airs at various times on cable channel 29, promoting the upcoming Charitable Chefs benefit, scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 25 from 7-9:30 p.m. at The Avenues Mall on Jacksonville’s Southside. Brennan is a board member of the Children’s Home Society, which benefits from 95 percent of the proceeds from the event. For more info, call 493-7739.

Ah, Dave is on the left.

— Posted by John E. Citrone

More than 1 million kids are affected by Juvenile Diabetes. The condition is especially tough on children since it requires constant monitoring of blood sugar levels, diet and lifestyle choices — not to mention those painful insulin injections. A wine tasting to benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation’s North Florida Chapter is held this evening, Wednesday, Aug. 26 at 7:30 p.m. at The Fresh Market, 840 A1A N., Ponte Vedra. Tickets are $25. For reservations, call 739-2101.

— Posted by John E. Citrone