BATON ROUGE – Local doctors put down their stethoscopes and picked up guitars, drums and microphones for a benefit concert that raised almost $30,000 for cancer patients and healthcare providers adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. John Lyons, founder of the event and chair of the skin and soft tissue multidisciplinary care team at the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center in Baton Rouge, created this fundraiser three years ago to support cancer patients and to raise melanoma and other soft tissue cancer awareness. The event’s fiduciary agent is the regional nonprofit organization Festigals Inc.
Rock for Spots, which is typically held at a music venue, went virtual this year. The one-night benefit concert featured four bands created by medical doctors and other healthcare professionals. The four physician led bands included Fret Medics, the V-Tones, Blue Verse and the Cupcake Strippers. Proceeds will benefit cancer patients through the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center’s program One Community, One Goal.
“We’re overwhelmed by the incredible support at Rock for Spots this year,” said Lyons. “Many of us already donate time and proceeds from our music hobby to local charities, so it makes sense to focus those efforts on cancer care – and we had a great time in the process. This year, we also included online healthcare professionals sharing their personal stories of the pandemic.”
Rock for Spots was made possible through the support of sponsors: the Roland and Kay Toups family, Merck, Humana, the William R. & Melissa C. Legier Family Foundation, and ACCENT New Orleans Inc., a DMC Network Company.
Rock for Spots will continue to collect donations on its GoFundMe page over the next four weeks. Anyone can support this cause by donating at this link: https://charity.gofundme.com/o/en/campaign/rock-for-spots.
