The family and friends of Mark Johnson will use music as a form of celebration this weekend at the Mark Johnson Jam.

    The concert will be on Saturday, Sept. 11 at the home of Ernie Wagner, a friend of the family, at 1348 Rocky Hill Road in Glasgow, Ky.

     The concert will be in memory of Mark Johnson.

    Johnson was a member of the local band, the Fender Benders, but passed away because of a heart attack last July.

    All of the funds raised from the concert will go to Johnson’s family.

     Johnson’s wife, Stephanie, said he was an “awesome, loving man.”

    Stephanie Johnson is a Bowling Green senior.

    She said it will be hard yet helpful to attend the concert with her two children,

Zakk, 20, and Shelley, 17.

    “It’s a good way to celebrate Mark,” Johnson said.

    Mike Wilson, public relations manager for the New Fender Benders, said he encourages people to come out and enjoy the jam.

    “They want to play for everyone that will hear them in order to pay respect to Mark,” he said. “Mark’s the type of guy that deserves this.”

    Steve Sanders, guitarist of the New Fender Benders and a close friend of Mark’s, agreed.

    “He [Mark] was the first one to play at a benefit for anyone who needed it,” he said. “He would set it up and

we would follow.”

    The concert will feature all types of music such as classic rock, southern rock,

blues, funk, soul, gospel, psychedelic rock and more, according to event’s web site.

    Everyone who is playing in the concert was a friend of Mark’s, Sanders said.

    He said most of them have played with him for more than 30 years.

    Admission for the concert is a $10 minimum donation.    

    Concert-goers need to bring their own chairs. They are welcome to bring their own coolers too.

    T-shirts can be ordered online at www.markjohnsonjam.com, according to the event’s web site.