Concert raises money for those affected by tornado in Logan County
BELLEFONTAINE, Ohio (WCMH) – A benefit concert for Logan County tornado victims raised $50,000 Thursday night. The Holland Theatre in Bellefontaine hosted the event for a nearly sold-out crowd of about 600 people.
“To help our neighbors. And um, you know that’s what it’s all about. Have fun, help our neighbors, raise a lot of money and get these businesses and people back on track, back whole. That’s the most important thing,” said Greg Titus, Executive Director for the Holland Theatre.
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The money raised goes to a newly formed Indian Lake Tornado Relief Fund put together by the United Way of Logan County.
Titus heard last Friday there were several central Ohio musicians interested in putting together a benefit concert for the tornado victims. He said it was a no brainer to get the Holland Theatre involved.
Tucker Munz, an up-and-coming country music artist from the Logan County area headlined the show and helped put it all together.
“I just started messaging some people I knew and trying to see what we could get set up. They kind of just ran with it. They got a lot of sponsors on board and got us in here at the Holland,” he said.
Munz has already been doing what he can to help the victims of the EF-3 tornado that ripped through the Indian Lake area.
“Me, my dad, my brother, a couple other buddies we went up there with chainsaws on Friday right after it happened. Just trying to help people out, get trees off their yard, their roofs, and stuff. It’s apocalyptic looking out there. Honestly at times there’s been more people than we know what to do with volunteers. It’s just been really cool to be able to see when tragedy does strike, our community can come together,” Munz said.
The outpouring of support is not new. Many have said they wish it wouldn’t take a tragedy to bring the community together. Ryan Hoehn brought trailers and volunteers to Russell’s Point Thursday and passed out chicken dinners from his restaurant Lee’s Famous Recipe Chicken. He owns three Lee’s restaurants in the northwest Ohio region. But Indian Lake is special to him, so he felt the need to help out the people.
“It’s very near and dear to my heart. Indian Lake – I grew up here on the weekends. It’s just always been a place that we frequent, and I wanted to do something to give back,” he said.
A line of people, a mix of residents of the Indian Lake community and volunteers there to help, waited patiently for the fried chicken dinners. Hoehn noted the amount of people from nearby towns that were there to pitch in.
“It’s a testament to this area and who we are and what we believe in. A lot of things going on crazy in the world right now. Unfortunately, it takes something like this to get people together. It’s a pretty neat thing to see everyone coming together and helping each other out,” he said.
Two college students from Toledo were among those waiting in line for dinner. They are working for Honda in Marysville as part of an educational experience through the University of Toledo where they are studying mechanical engineering.
When they arrived this week, the wreckage was a shock.
“It looks worse in person than on the news. It’s pretty bad. There’s a lot that got hit,” said Michael Shell, a Junior at Toledo.
Ryan Snow, a Toledo Sophomore was there helping his classmate clear debris and pile it on the side of the roadways for crews to easily pick it up.
“When you actually get here and see how people are impacted, you see somebody’s house completely destroyed. You see all their stuff just laying out in a yard or in a field. It really, it hits your soul,” Snow explained.
Even with all the suffering, a night of fried chicken and country music helped bring people together, and raised $50,000 for the United Way of Logan County Indian Lake Tornado Relief Fund.
“They’re proud to be a part of this. They’re proud to come together and help out their community. I think that’s really cool,” said Snow.
The United Way of Logan County Indian Lake Tornado Relief Fund can be found here.
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