20th Annual Gibson Guitar 5K To Raise Funds For Food For Families In Need

GIBSON BRANDS CELEBRATES TWO DECADES OF RUNNING & ROCKING

MEMPHIS WITH 20TH ANNUAL GIBSON GUITAR 5K

Event to Raise Critical Funds for St. Patrick Community Outreach

Providing Food for Families in Need

MEMPHIS (June 1, 2016) – Over 2,000 runners and walkers will line up on iconic Beale Street on Saturday, June 11 to raise funds for the St. Patrick Community Outreach. The Gibson Foundation, the charitable arm of Gibson Brands, is sponsoring the event, bringing much needed funds to the Memphis community. The highly-anticipated, post-race celebration takes place at the Gibson Guitar Factory with live music, delicious food and a charity auction featuring bids on factory fresh Gibson Guitars. Winners of the 5k will receive actual Gibson Guitar head stocks refashioned as trophies.

“Memphis is a very important part of the legacy of Gibson Brands and we have felt so welcomed by the Memphis community from the very beginning,” said Henry Juszkiewicz, Chairman/CEO of Gibson Brands. “The Gibson Guitar 5K is an event we look forward to every year and we are thankful to all the 5K runners and walkers that will be coming out to support St. Patrick Community Outreach this year.”

"We've had a blast for 20 years while helping feed and educate people through funds raised by the Gibson 5K,” stated Joe Birch, News Anchor, WMC-TV 5 Memphis.  “Our gratitude runs deep for all our friends at Gibson who have allowed us to dance on the Gibson factory rooftop, enjoy great music at our post race party and provide meaningful help for our neighbors at the end of the day." 

The event funds St. Patrick Community Outreach, Inc., a 501c nonprofit located two blocks southeast of Gibson Memphis. The agency operates the city’s largest emergency food pantry in Memphis’ most economically challenged zip code, 38126.  It runs the Green Machine Mobile Food Market, a Memphis city bus renovated to serve as a rolling farmer’s market. The Green machine visits Memphis neighborhoods that lack full service supermarkets and sell fruits, vegetables and other healthy foods at cost. In addition, they feed the hungry at their community outreach headquarters every Sunday. In past years, the Gibson 5k has funded an after school tutoring program, a computer lab, sports teams, music lessons as well as field trips for children from the area.

Runners will line up from B.B. King’s Blues Club at Beale and will run alongside the mighty Mississippi before finishing their trek at the Gibson Memphis Factory. The 20th annual race is presented by the Gibson Foundation; Main Street Dental/Jodi Rump DDS; FedEx; Sharp, Robbins & Popwell, LLC; Landers Ford and Southland Park. For more information on the 5k, please visit http://www.gibsonguitar5k.com/

About Gibson Brands:

Gibson Brands, the fastest-growing company in the music and sound industries, was founded in 1894 and is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. Gibson Brands is a global leader in musical instruments, consumer electronics, and professional audio, and is dedicated to bringing the finest experiences to consumers by offering exceptional products with world-recognized brands.

All Gibson Brands are dedicated to innovation, prestige and improving the quality of life and music for its customers. Its goal is to provide the most exceptional customer audio products and experiences in the world.

About Gibson Foundation:

Beginning its 15th year of service, the Gibson Foundation (www.GibsonFoundation.org ) strives to improve the condition of underserved youth throughout our global communities by the investment of resources, efforts and ideas in five important non-profit categories:

• Education (advocating effective innovation in knowledge development for young people, emphasizing life coping skills through creativity and imagination)
• Music & the Arts (inspiring and encouraging young people to practice individual creative expression)
• Environment (protecting young people from environmental hazards, preserving a sustainable natural world)
• Health & Welfare (ensuring the well-being and safety of young people, with an emphasis on culturally relevant, community-based supports)
• Community (strengthening organizations with similar interests and goals)