Bluesy country heroine Anna Garrott hits the ground running (literally) this summer with a hot tour schedule, major event appearances and participation in her first half-marathon.

Anna Garrott takes her passion and verve to Nashville’s lower Broadway to perform at the annual National Little People Conference of America. This year’s Little People Of America 2010 Conference, which has taken place in New York and Los Angeles in previous years, will be hosted in Downtown Nashville’s Renaissance Hotel, July 2 – 9, 2010. Anna will perform on Wednesday evening, July 7, beginning at 9:00PM. Little People of America, Inc. (LPA) is a national non-profit organization that provides support and information to people of short stature and their families.

“I am so excited to be a part of the National Little People of America Conference this year,” Garrott reveals. “I’ve enjoyed becoming acquainted with a few members of the LPA national board and they opened my eyes and heart to the organization’s amazing work and those they cater to! The LPA has given me a renewed sense of just how wonderfully diverse our society is and just how much we can learn from one another.”

LPA offers support to 200+ forms of dwarfism providing social interaction, parents and peers support, medical support and education, scholarships and grants. Members range from newborns to senior citizens, little people and average height. With 14 districts and 70 chapters throughout the country, Little People Of America is dedicated to improving the quality of life for people with dwarfism throughout their lives while celebrating with great pride Little People’s contribution to social diversity. LPA’s initiative is to generate global awareness and bring solutions to the prominent issues affecting individuals of short stature and their families.

“Much like myself, these extraordinary folks pack a whole lot of attitude into a small package and I can’t wait to rock out with all of them at their event!”

The hundreds who gather for the weeklong event all share a common thread. Attendees are all affected, either directly or indirectly, and the week-long convention is dedicated to helping little people adapt to a “big” world by providing information, support and, most importantly, allowing these individuals and families to kick back and have a little fun in a big city.

Simultaneous with her performance schedule, Anna is gearing up for the Rock ‘N’ Roll Chicago Half Marathon, Garrott kicks off her high heels (everyday footwear the 5-foot-nothing is known for) and remains focused to train while on tour, running up to 10 miles a day, and still has energy for her explosive live performances.

­“A few months ago, I decided that I needed a new personal goal to work toward. Training for a half-marathon seemed to be just the thing to fill the void,” Anna Garrott explains. “Since diving headfirst into training, I have come to discover and love this whole new society of marathons/runners; everyone is just as passionate as I am about the solo sport of running. It’s a ‘change of pace’ from the music business.”

Garrott runs in the half marathon on Sunday, August 1, 2010.

A marketing major who sang her way through college performing on stages in the Southeast, from Panama City to Mississippi, Garrott magnifies her girl power in every spitfire performance. Named “Who New To Watch” in April 2010’s CMA Close-up and featured in Country Weekly’s “Listen Up!,” Anna Garrott is as feisty and sassy as they come. A country performer and songwriter whose musical make-up highlights a touch of Patsy Cline tradition and a brush of Janis Joplin bohemia, Garrott is no shrinking violet. Anna signed to Blue Steel Records in 2009 and released her debut single “What A Way To Go” to country radio in September 2009 from her full-length CD, entitled ONLY TIME WILL TELL on retail shelves now.