Jonesboro, AR – (JonesboroRightNow.com) – The 27th annual MessiahSing: A Sing-along Messiah Benefit Concert is set for December to raise money for hunger relief.

The concert is free to the public, and members of the community are welcome to join the choir as well. Choir members will sing Christmas choruses from Georg Friedrich Händel’s “Messiah,” a 1742 musical composition featuring narrative texts a choir can read from, as well as orchestral accompaniment.

Kelly Craft, music conductor and organizer of the event, said the concert is raising money for the Helping Neighbors Interfaith Food Pantry. While the concert itself is free, Craft said audience members are asked to donate what money they can to the food pantry, which will have a representative on site to collect donations.

Craft said there is no set donation goal.

“The best thing for Helping Neighbors Interfaith Food Pantry is to bring money,” Craft said. “Their dollar will go further than our dollar. They can get food cheaper than we can buy food.”

Helping Neighbors Interfaith Food Pantry serves Craighead County residents. The nonprofit is managed by a board of directors made up of representatives from 23 churches and a synagogue. Click here to learn more about the food pantry.

The concert will take place Dec. 2 at 7:30 p.m. in the sanctuary of First United Methodist Church, located at 801 S. Main St. Scores will be available for audience members who would like to sing along.

Community members who want to participate in the choir need to arrive at the church at 6 p.m. the day of the concert for rehearsal, Craft said. Rehearsal will begin at 6:15 p.m.

“We’ll rehearse all the choruses in ‘Messiah’,” said Craft. “We just put it together really fast, then we add the soloists at 7:30, and it becomes a pleasant evening. We are doing the things that God’s calling us to do: bring comfort, peace, and joy to our community.”

To see a list of the vocal and instrumental soloists, as well as the orchestra members, click here.