ROCKPORT — On Saturday, May 24, at 7 p.m., The Good Trouble Project will host its Spring fundraising concert to benefit Out Maine. The featured performer will be Jud Caswell and be hosted by local singer-songwriters John and Rachel Nicholas. The concert will be held at the Barn at Barnswallow Books, located at 166 Russell Ave, in Rockport Village.

The Good Trouble Project was formed three years ago by John and Rachel Nicholas with an aim to host intimate acoustic music shows that benefit local organizations and named to honor the legacy of late civil rights leader and congressman John Lewis.

Since 1996, OUT Maine has been working to create more welcoming communities and affirming for Maine’s diverse queer youth in all of their intersectional identities.

"We seek to change the very systems that serve them: schools, health care, foster care, community organizations, and more," said a news release.

OUT Maine takes a statewide, three-pronged approach: support LGBTQ+ youth and their families and allies; empower youth to be their most authentic, resilient selves; and educate health care providers, educators, clergy, and other professionals who change young people’s lives through their support.OUT Maine is a leader in designing community-based, targeted programming that lifts up LGBTQ+ youth in Maine’s isolated and under-resourced regions and provides social support, positive LGBTQ+ role models, and inclusive policies and programs these youth need to succeed.

Jud Caswell is an award-winning songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who has been performing in his native state of Maine and beyond for more than 25 years. In 2006 he made a splash on the national scene, winning the legendary Kerrville New Folk competition. He’s had his songs taught at Berklee, recorded by Judy Collins, and named “#4 Song of the Decade” by New York’s WFUV. His record “Live at the Seagull Shop” was the number 1 album on the Folk Alliance International radio charts in March of 2020. Jud is currently releasing a series of albums of music that he recorded during the early months of the pandemic.

With their award winning songs and soulful harmonies, John and Rachel Nicholas have been performing on the New England folk circuit for a few decades. Before founding the Good Trouble Project they were also members of The Lowdown - a band with David Dodson - and hosted a music series at Harbor Square Gallery soon after moving to Maine in 2012. 

The concert is sponsored in part by Tom O’Donovan of Harbor Square Gallery and the Lesher Family Foundation.

Tickets are $15 and can be reserved by calling or texting John at 508-314-1506.