Suncoast BBQ & Bluegrass Bash

Thousands of bluegrass and barbecue lovers fill the Venice Municipal Airport festival grounds each spring to enjoy competition barbecue prepared by some of the best pit masters in the country and live bluegrass music performed by award-winning artists.

But the Suncoast BBQ & Bluegrass Bash is more than just smokers, slow-cooked pork and banjos -- it's also a fundraiser for the Suncoast Foundation for Handicapped Children, Inc., an organization that has built facilities throughout the county, which are used, rent-free, by local nonprofits to serve more than 8,000 special-needs children each year.

This year's event takes place Saturday, April 15, and guests will have a chance to rub elbows with 60 of the finest competition barbecue teams in the region, enjoy their finger-licking-good chicken, ribs, pork and beef brisket, all while listening to award-winning bluegrass musicians.

Each year, the free event features a three-part food competition, including a barbecue contest, chili cook-off and dessert bake-off, as well as a variety of family-friendly activities, such as a special kids' zone, a cornhole tournament and a sporting clays event.

And, of course, there’s the bluegrass music. This year’s lineup includes Grammy-nominated acts The Boxcars and The Grascals, as well as multiple International Bluegrass Music Association award winner Lonesome River Band.

For more, visit www.suncoastbbqbash.com.