Flood:
On Sunday, May 2, 2010 the Cumberland River crested as a possible result of the El Nino weather phenomenon, the North Atlantic Oscillation, and at least thirteen inches of rain, or a combination thereof, burying Music City in its path with more than eleven feet of water, causing a confirmed death toll to date of at least twenty-four people, and creating an estimated excess of one billion dollars in damages, however, we must all borrow the “can do” attitude of the Classic Hank Jr. song A Country Boy Can Survive in order to get through this disaster together, which we will.
Stars Affected:
Entertainers heavily affected by the worst flood in Nashville since at least 1975 includes a perpetual Who’s Who of Country Music including Keith Urban, who reportedly lost all his guitars, Kenny Chesney, who lost his road equipment, Brad Paisley, Vince Gill, Dierks Bentley, Big & Rich, Jo Dee Messina, and several others.
Jeannie Seely:
No Country Entertainer may have been hit any harder by this disasterous flood than one of the Grand Ladies of the Grand Ole Opry, and a woman this Writer owes a deep debt of gratitude he will never be able to repay her for concerning Billy and Bettie Walker, Charles Lilley, and Danny Patten, who reportedly lost everything she owned, including her home, her car, and her career memorabilia, but managed to rescue her dog, and keep her true spirit of Country Music, and its Legends, a lesson we should all remember, when she stated “I {you} can either sit around and cry or keep on living,” and had to borrow a pair of shoes to perform the Tuesday Night Opry this week. This classy lady is the epitome of the undefeatable true heart that beats in the Country Music Community everywhere.
Jeannie, my heart breaks for your losses and I don’t have the words to tell you how much you are truly loved by us all!
Telethon and More:
How can the people of this great city of Nashville be helped through these extremely difficult times? Taylor Swift stepped up to the plate and hit a grand slam home run when she reportedly donated $500,000 to the cause. Vince Gill, Amy Grant, Reba McEntire, Charlie Daniels, Darius Rucker, Steve Wariner, Jeff Hanna, Diamond Rio, Matraca Berg, Phil Vassar, Dean Sams, Larry Gatlin, Naomi Judd, Chuck Wicks, the Time Jumpers, Lorrie Morgan, and others presented a telethon that raised more than two million dollars in three hours time, with the proceeds slated to stay in town and help the Salvation Army, the Red Cross, the Second Harvest Food Bank, and other organizations that need the assistance as well, and another fund raiser is being planned by Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Brad Paisley, Rodney Atkins, and Lady Antebellum. This Writer will not be the least bit surprised if several other Stars don’t climb on board to help out the cause either.
You see National News, although you haven’t given this situation much coverage at all, that’s just how we, the Country Music Community, and Nashville do things. Where have you been on this story?
Relief Efforts:
Hands On Nashville will coordinate all Metro Nashville official relief efforts and volunteers are definately needed. Krogers, the First Tennessee Bank, the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee, Graceworks Ministries, the Crag At Cool Springs, Golden Skin Care, Christ Church, Souls4Souls, Oasis Church, Arthouse Gardens, Regions Bank, the Rock and Ride Biker Event, the Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive, the Benefit Concert and Silent Auction, the Tennessee Renaissance Festival, All Natural Lawns and Landscapes, the Country Cares Benefit Concert, Cheatham County, and so many more local businesses are joining forces to help as well. In addition, all the proceeds from this year’s CMT Fan Festival in June will be donated to flood relief.
Support:
What can the rest of us do you may wonder? Get involved in the various efforts around town Nashville, and the rest of the Country Music world, needs! Let’s all make our beloved city even better than it ever was before, and that can be as simple as texting “Red Cross” to 90999 to make a much needed donation.
Sources:
This Article was compiled from several websites that provide much more information on the Nashville Flood 2010 including:
wsm.com
tennessean.com
nashvilleflood.net
nashvillest.com
wkrn.com
newsbusters.org
