Jo Dee Messina photo courtesy of jodeemessina.com.

Behind on your holiday shopping already? You probably won’t get much sympathy from Jo Dee Messina. Despite the fact that she spent large chunks of November away from home on tour, she’s already got the decorations up at her house — and she’s been tending to a sick husband as she enjoys her first Christmas as a mom.

If that’s not enough, she’s packing even more into the first week of December as she does the season up big-time. Jo Dee’s part of a new round of talent announced for Wednesday’s annual NBC special “Christmas In Rockefeller Center,” which puts her in the company of Rod Stewart, Rob Thomas, Barry Manilow, Aretha Franklin, Michael Buble and Alicia Keys.

And topping off the week, Jo Dee’s got a pair of fundraising concerts on tap Saturday at the Brentwood United Methodist Church in Middle Tennessee. The shows are officially free, though she’s asking for donations, with all proceeds from the door — and from merchandise sales — earmarked for Harvest Hands, a community organization dedicated to an impoverished neighborhood in Nashville. She’s a firm believer in the program, particularly because its director is passionately involved 24/7.

“This is not something where they go in from 9 to 5 and then go back to their house in the hills,” she told Tonic.com. “He and his wife live there, in the inner city. They went into this community and said, ‘What do you need from us?’ The first thing they did was go in and knock down a crack house. The church bought it, went in, knocked it down and made a playground out of it. This is not people throwing money at a problem. They’re living in the midst of it and helping with their time and their love and understanding.”

The evening performance, slated for 7 p.m. CT, will be streamed for free on the ‘Net at www.JoDeeMessina.com and at www.Ustream.com.

Jo Dee’s not the only country figure with a seasonal charity show in Nashville this week. Bryan White, Julie Roberts, Blaine Larsen, Trailer Choir, Carter’s Chord, Sixpence None The Richer’s Leigh Nash and “White Liar” songwriter Natalie Hemby are among those performing Wednesday at Mercy Lounge in a Compassional International benefit for the Global Food Crisis.

In addition, Thom Schuyler and Fred Knobloch — two-thirds of the ‘80s trio Schuyler, Knobloch & Overstreet — take part Thursday at Woodmont Christian Church in a Carols For Cancer event, according to The Tennessean. The concert features a number of Music City’s best songwriters, including Mike Reid (“Stranger In My House”), Don Henry (“Where’ve You Been”), Tony Arata (“The Dance”), Marcus Hummon (“Bless The Broken Road”), Leslie Satcher (“Troubadour”) and Steve Diamond (“I Can Love You Like That”). In 2008, Carols For Cancer raised a whopping $200,000.

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