The Homestand '23 concert on Sept. 9 was a wild success by all accounts, starting off with an embarrassing thumping of the Saskatchewan Roughriders by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and leading into a cheering, enthusiastic concert going late into the evening with Jordyn Pollard, Lindi Ortega, the Mike Plume Band, and finally Corb Lund and the Hurtin' Albertans.
Final numbers for the event, both in terms of concert attendance and money raised for youth mental health, will take a while to determine. However, founding member Shea Jameson said he was shocked by how packed Ross Wells was on Saturday night.
"We're ecstatic about the turnout by the community this year, I think we're 150-plus per cent over last year, as far as I can tell right now," Jameson said. "The support that we've gotten from the business community has been remarkable, and then all the volunteers helping us run things smoothly, I mean it's all just come together and it's a remarkable day for us so far.
"I briefly chatted with Mike Plume a bit ago, he's just a really sweet guy who loves Moose Jaw and is happy to be back. I'm looking forward to his set and hearing him with his full band, and it's always so nice to hear how much he enjoys our city. Jordyn Pollard has been hanging around Moose Jaw for a couple of years, she opened the evening for us and she was phenomenal.
"Lindi [Ortega] is up there right now, I met her briefly and I hope she's having fun, and of course Corb Lund is up last, and he's always dynamite."
As a Roughriders fan, Jameson had a hard time describing the game — the Blue Bombers did everything right and won 51 - 6.
"Oh, man, the Bombers showed up," Jameson laughed ruefully. "They didn't like what happened last week, I guess, and... It was a wreck, is what it was, I don't know how else to put it."
"A spanking! Spanked them! Politely, I might add, in a nice way," a pair of happy Blue Bombers fans chipped in. They declined to give their names, saying they had stirred up too much trouble following the game. "There are t-shirts coming for 'Riders fans, called 'shellshock'. It was great, because we drove a long way to be here for the game and the concert, so we're feeling awesome."
Volunteers are an essential element of putting the charity concert together. Randy LaRose is a baseball fanatic who sits on the board for Ross Wells Ballpark and has volunteered every year of the concert.
"It's a good time, and it's a very good thing for Moose Jaw minor ball and baseball in general here," LaRose said. "There are a lot more people in the park than I normally see, I really enjoy seeing it full and I suspect it's going to get even more full as we go on through the night. People are having a good time, nobody out of hand, so it's all alright."
Sarah and Lowell Burtnick from Moose Jaw received free concert tickets from a family member. It was their first time at Homestand '23 and they said they were impressed with the organization.
"We're happy to see all the artists, but we've always wanted to see Corb Lund especially, so we're excited for him, for sure," Sarah said. "It's a beautiful set-up, I mean, what a great stage."
"Yeah, great evening for it," Lowell agreed. "It's nice so far, lots of people and we're enjoying ourselves."
