Elvis show coming to Car d'Lane

The king is coming home.

Scot Bruce, an internationally-renowned Elvis Presley impersonator who hails from the Northwest, will perform Saturday, June 16 at 2 p.m. in McEuen Park, during Car d’Lane.

Tickets are $20. All proceeds will go toward efforts to build a health clinic in rural Bolivia.

Bruce, who comes from Pullman, Washington and attended the University of Idaho, sees the show as a homecoming.

“My heart is in that region,” he said. “That’s where I grew up. It’s very special to get back.”

For 25 years, Bruce has performed as Elvis full-time, wowing fans all over the world with his 1950s and ‘60s-era tribute show. An actor as well as a singer, he’s appeared as Elvis in music videos with Faith Hill and Sheryl Crow, and he’s played recurring roles on “Days of Our Lives” and “The Bold and the Beautiful.” Bruce also performs at Disneyland on a regular basis.

“I really feel lucky to have been able to see the world and celebrate this great musician with people all over the planet,” he said. “It’s remarkable to see how well-loved Elvis is worldwide. The songs are just that good.”

Bruce became interested in rockabilly music in the 1980s, while attending the University of Idaho. Around that time, when he traded his “classic ‘80s mullet” for a pompadour, people started asking him, “Has anyone ever told you that you look kind of like Elvis?”

He didn’t give it much thought until he moved to Los Angeles in the ‘90s to pursue a career in entertainment. Initially, he put together an Elvis act as a side gig to help him get by.

“It’s amazing how creative you can get when you’re starving,” he said with a laugh. But the show took off fast and sparked a career that’s spanned more than two decades. “Before I knew it, it was my full-time job and I was traveling the world.”

Bruce said he’s grateful for every day that he spends sharing Elvis’ music with fans.

The tribute concert will benefit a partnership between local firefighters, paramedics and emergency physicians and Mano a Mano Bolivia, a development group that has built 162 clinics in rural Bolivia.

“The rural villages are very poor in Bolivia,” said Gordy Luther, an emergency physician at Kootenai Health. He is also the Kootenai County Emergency Medical Services System (KCEMSS) Medical Director. “Mano a Mano has done fantastic, sustainable work building clinics. We’re excited to partner with them.”

Luther traveled to Bolivia in March to teach a prehospital trauma course, along with paramedics from Kootenai County EMS and a second physician. After working with the first responder community, Luther was determined to return and do even more to help.

It was Luther’s idea to involve Bruce--they’re both from Pullman and have known each other since first grade.

“From the moment I called him up and told him the idea, he was all for it,” Luther said. “He has a great heart.”

For his part, Bruce said he’s honored to help by bringing his show to Car d’Lane.

“I really do love celebrating this great music with other people who love it as much as I do,” Bruce said. “I’m a fan first.”