Lynyrd Skynyrd singer to join Locash at Saturday benefit show in Orange Park

A weekend off is a rare thing for Johnny Van Zant, who spends most of them on the road singing with Lynyrd Skynyrd.

He'll be home in Middleburg on Saturday, though, and is expected to be the "surprise guest" at Rock the Box 2, a benefit concert at the Thrasher-Horne Center on the campus of St. Johns River College in Orange Park.

"We lucked out," Van Zant said this week. "I just got in from South Dakota. It took me 18 hours to get to Billings, Montana, thanks to our glorious airlines."

Country duo Locash is the headliner, and Van Zant said he'll probably join them for a song. Local country band Cumberland and former Major League pitcher turned country singer Brett Myers open the show.

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The concert is a benefit for St. Michael's Soldiers, a Middleburg-based group that supports local active-duty military and their families.

Active and retired military, first responders, hospital and front-line workers, teachers and linemen can get two free tickets by applying through the venue's website at thcenter.org. Tickets are also available for purchase, priced at $29-$39, but the 1,700-seat venue is nearly sold out.

This won't be Van Zant's first appearance on the Thrasher-Horne stage. He and his brother, Donnie, joined .38 Special at a St. Michael's Soldiers benefit in 2019. He said Donnie, who also lives in the Middleburg area, won't be able to perform at this show, though, because he is recovering from recent hip surgery.