The Rolling Stones, Vermont farmers, UVM Extension, and the university’s alumni generally don’t find themselves in the same press release for an event. Not the case, with the Thursday, Oct. 11 “Hug Your Farmer” benefit concert at Higher Ground in South Burlington.

The show will be an all-star tribute to fifty years of the Rolling Stones with all proceeds going to The Vermont New Farmer Project, an initiative of the UVM Extension Center for Sustainable Agriculture. The program provides research, education and technical assistance to Vermont's aspiring farmers. This January, the New Farmer Project will launch the Vermont Youth Agricultural Individual Development Account (IDA) program in which young farmers ages 14-21 can see their investments matched 2:1 towards the purchase of a productive asset like livestock, feed, or equipment.

With the average age of Vermont farmers at 57, innovation like the Youth IDA program, the first of its kind in the United States, is critical.

The line-up for the Stones tribute show includes Bob Wagner, Joshua Panda, Jon Fishman (Phish), Clint Bierman, Peter Day, Ray Paczkowski, Steve Hadeka, Ryan Miller (Guster), The Sweet Remains, Matt Hagen & Mike Clifford (Lendway) and special guests.

Select Design presents the evening with additional support from Gardener's Supply, MINI of Burlington, American Flatbread, Guild & Company, Skinny Pancake, Hotel Vermont, Hen of the Wood Burlington, and Soundtoys.

UVM alumni co-owners of Select Design Jeff Beer ’87 and Kevin Owen ’87 met playing basketball on the court behind Wills Hall their freshman year. Their entrepreneurial venture began with a scheme to sell a few T-shirts at the 1988 NCAA Ski Championships to finance a ski trip of their own. From that beginning, they’ve steadily grown Select, headquartered on Flynn Avenue in Burlington, into a national firm. With a strong sense of their Vermont roots, Select regularly initiates and supports community events such as “Hug Your Farmer.”

The show: Thursday, Oct 11. Doors 7 p.m., show at 8 p.m., Higher Ground Ballroom.
Tickets are available on the Higher Ground website.