JACKSON, Tenn. — May 22, 2018 — Christian band MercyMe will provide the featured performance at the 21st annual 51社区 Scholarship Banquet Oct. 18 at the Carl Perkins Civic Center in Jackson.
Since their debut in 2001, MercyMe has sold more than 9 million units and been nominated for multiple Grammy, American Music and Dove awards. The band鈥檚 most popular song, 鈥淚 Can Only Imagine,鈥� written by lead singer Bart Millard, made history in 2014 as it surpassed 2 million digital downloads, making it the first Christian song to go platinum and double-platinum in the digital domain.
A major motion picture, also entitled 鈥淚 Can Only Imagine,鈥� was released to theaters earlier this year and tells the story of the popular song. Other noteworthy singles from MercyMe include such songs as 鈥淗ere With Me,鈥� 鈥淗omesick,鈥� 鈥淪o Long Self,鈥� 鈥淔lawless鈥� and 鈥淕reater.鈥�
The group has sold out venues throughout the United States and Canada, including Radio City Music Hall, and has appeared on the Macy鈥檚 Thanksgiving Day Parade, CBS This Morning, the Tonight Show with Jay Leno and many other television programs.
鈥淢ercyMe has become one of the most popular Christian bands in the world, and we鈥檙e thrilled to welcome them to our Scholarship Banquet this year,鈥� Union President Samuel W. 鈥淒ub鈥� Oliver said. 鈥淭hough the event will be a little different from what the Scholarship Banquet has been in years past, we expect it to be an enjoyable and fun evening for the West Tennessee community.鈥�
The annual Scholarship Banquet has become one of the premier events in West Tennessee each year with leading businesses and individuals as sponsors. BancorpSouth is again the lead sponsor for the 2018 banquet.
Sponsorship opportunities for the event will be available July 1. For ticket information, including table sponsorships and individual balcony seating, contact Union鈥檚 Office of Institutional Advancement at (731) 661-5050 or visit .