In light of the devastation caused by the Fourmile fire, I feel like anything that I write in this spot right now would be trite and meaningless. But I hope this isn’t: I want to encourage everyone to donate time, money, or something to help those who lost so much in the fire.
Getting a ticket for the big benefit in Broomfield is just one way to help, but when the final notes of that show have faded away there will still be people in need, and I’d like to suggest different ways of giving, rather than buying a ticket (especially since that’s impossible at this point).
Give directly back to the community.
Go into Nederland and buy something, anything, on First Street and leave a few extra dollars for whoever helps you there.
Go up to the Millsite in Ward, buy a beer and pay with a ten-dollar bill, leaving the change behind.
Go to the Gold Hill Inn and get dinner. Trust me, not only will you be helping the economy, but if you’ve never dined at the Inn, you’ve got an amazing treat ahead of you.
There’s a good chance that whoever you leave a few extra dollars with isn’t a direct victim of the fire, but there’s an even better chance that they know someone who is. Consider yourself a part of the Fourmile economic stimulus. The more we all put in, the faster everyone can rebuild.
The mega benefit is an awesome and amazing event, and I’m grateful not only to the musicians, but to the promoters and everyone behind the scenes who made that happen.
A few smaller benefits had already taken place by the time The Marquee went to press.
Mountain Standard Time played a benefit at the Stage Stop. Hodi’s Half Note in Fort Collins sponsored Random Rab on Friday, Sept. 24, which raised funs for The Foothills United Way. The Gold Hill Inn held an event on Sunday, Sept. 26 to benefit the Boulder Mountain Fire Relief Fund.
And Nederland fusion band Fat Rabbit took donations at their show in Nederland on Friday, Sept. 24 to benefit the Gold Hill Elementary School — a creative way to, again, directly benefit the entire community.
We at The Marquee hope that events and gestures like these continue to pour in over the coming months. If you’re involved in, or are planning an event like any of these, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’ll scream it from the mountain tops for you.
In the meantime, continue to be good to each other. Continue to give. Continue to help. It’s amazing how magnanimous we can be to one another when our backs are against the wall, so let’s do it even when they’re not.
See you at the shows.
