FORT MYERS, Fla. - eTradeWire -- Lee BIA Builders Care's popular BBQ, Bands & Brew fundraising event raised more than $96,000 to support the nonprofit in its mission to provide emergency construction services at no cost to needy and deserving elderly and/or disabled homeowners, and their families, who cannot obtain repairs through traditional means.

The 13^th annual festival, held March 24 at Caloosa Sound Amphitheater in downtown Fort Myers, drew in nearly 2,000 attendees and featured a lineup of live performances, food vendors and fun-filled activities for all ages, including a cornhole tournament and a children's play area with face-painting, games and more. All proceeds from the event will stay local to provide emergency construction services to Lee County homeowners in need.

"BBQ, Bands & Brew is our largest fundraising event of the year, and the support raised at this year's event will go a long way in helping us improve the lives of deserving homeowners right here in Lee County," said Leigh Cloud, executive director of Lee BIA Builders Care. "We are thankful for all the guests, volunteers, vendors and performers who helped make our 2024 event such a success."

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Blue Wave Rockers, Rocker and Ben Allen Band were this year's featured entertainers. Southwest Florida's top pitmasters competed for the title of "Best BBQ in Town," including 5 Piggies Bar-B-Que, Big Smoke BBQ & Catering, Famous Dave's Bar-B-Que, Red's What the Food, S.L.A.B. BBQ and That BBQ Place.

Attendees of the event and a panel of celebrity judges helped to name winners in the following categories:

• People's Choice: Big Smoke BBQ & Catering
• Best Overall: Famous Dave's Bar-B-Que
• Best Chicken: S.L.A.B. BBQ
• Best Pork: S.L.A.B. BBQ
• Best Ribs: Red's What the Food
• Best Brisket: That BBQ Place
• Best Side Dish: 5 Piggies Bar-B-Que

All Star Equipment Rentals & Sales was the presenting sponsor for BBQ, Bands & Brew. Major & Official sponsors included Budweiser, City of Fort Myers, eAtlantic Engineering, Edge Water Development Group, GulfCoast Engineering, Plumbing Solutions and Priority Marketing. Promotions sponsors included Carter-Pritchett Advertising, Happenings Magazine, WAVE 101.1 and WINK. Supporting sponsors included Aubuchon Homes; Cape Coral Plumbing; Christopher Alan Homes; Cogent Bank; Crews Environmental; Cypress Bay Development; European Craftsmen; Extreme Temp; Florida Install; Fuse Specialty Appliances; Hajoca Corporation; Lauren Homes; LCEC; Lennar; Liberty Aluminum; LSI Companies; M.A.B. Homes; M. J. Flaherty Builders; MY Shower Door; Premier Portables; PulteGroup; R.D. Johnson Construction; Stickboy Software and IT; Target Roofing; Trophy Case; and WillScot.

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To date, Lee BIA Builders Care has helped more than 500 Lee County households and provided over $5 million in emergency construction services and materials at no cost to families and local homeowners in need. Since its inception, the event has raised over $880,000 in support of Lee BIA Builders Care.