Levitt winds down, receives a surprise guest

Published 11:18 am Friday, September 7, 2018

With the Levitt AMP Middlesboro Music Series getting ready to wind down in two weeks, the Bell County Tourism Board discussed a special guest appearance from Elizabeth Levitt Hirsch — board president of the Levitt Foundation.

Hirsch is a philanthropist with a passion for the performing arts.

Her visit on Sept. 13 is, according to tourism director Jon Grace, significant because Middlesboro is one of only two cities in America to have landed the Levitt AMP grant for four years running.

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“We are thrilled to know that Liz Levitt Hirsh with Los Angeles-based Levitt Foundation will be here for our Sept. 13 show. Middlesboro and the tri-state region offers many unique attributes to visitors, and the flourishing of the Levitt AMP Middlesboro Music Series in the heart of downtown is one of those special features, as well as a key component of efforts to revitalize the district,” said Dana Greene, Middlesboro Levitt Committee Spokesperson. “The visit from Ms. Levitt Hirsch should demonstrate what our efforts have been, what our vision is for the future, and, hopefully, lead to more concert series in the future.”

Grace stated, “To have Liz Levitt Hirsch, the daughter of Mortimer and Mimi Levitt, visit our little town here in the mountains…it is a huge, huge honor. The Levitt Foundation has so graciously invested a huge sum of money into Middlesboro. They are responsible for us being able to transform a vacant gravel lot into one of the nicest outdoor concert venues between Lexington and Knoxville. This year has been the biggest yet for the Levitt AMP Middlesboro Music Series, and we could not have done it without the help from the Levitt Foundation.”

The board also noted that, along with the usual vendors that have attended the series this year, there will also be inflatables for children for the last two shows.