Veterans Isle Benefit Raises Over 150,000L

 

 On Wednesday October 5, Veterans Isle held it's monthly benefit concert. The event took place from 4PM to 9PM SL time (midnight EST), with a DJ and several live performers. Organized in part by Frets Nirvana, the show took place high above the sim in the Special Events hangar. The concert was to raise money for the Homes For Our Troops charity.

Homes For Our Troops is a 4 star charity according to Charity Navigator are considered a top rated Veteran and Military Charity.  Nearly 90 cents of every dollar donated to HFOT goes directly towards the building program! 

HFOT builds homes in any state in the country where the Veterans choose to rebuild their lives.  They have currently built in 46 states.  Veterans will typically choose to settle near family and friends, close to medical services and warmer climates.  Prosthetics can easily freeze and the cold weather itself can reap havoc on them.

Every Veteran who does receive a home has a Support Specialist assigned to them to keep in touch for many years to make sure they are doing well and have access to any supplemental services they may need.

 

HFOT was founded in 2004, in Taunton, MA when a local contractor wanted to build an injured Veteran a home.  The Veteran declined unless more homes would be built to pay it forward instead of just one for him.

 

BJ Singer was playing music at 5PM. At 6PM, standing in for the scheduled singer was  DennyMac Melodious. He was followed by Wolfie Starfire at 7. Last but not least was Chillee Hernandoz who took to the stage at 8PM. The musicians would perform on stage while the crowd danced away on the floor. People would occasionally donate Linden dollars to the two house-shaped kiosks on either side of the stage. Frets would occasionally challenge people to donate a little more, offering to match it.

While the musicians played, there was some joking around in the audience, "Chillee sing Baby Shark!" "Mark nooooo! Do not request THAT song! ... And I will up my bid for her NOT to sing it!" "Mark you have to out bid me to not sing it."

 

Among those in the audience was Any1 Gynoid, who wrote for the Newser (and SL Newspaper) in the past.

 

By the close of the concert, a total of 154,400 Lindens had been raised in both kiosks.

To learn more about Homes for Our Troops, check https://www.hfotusa.org .

Correction: Earlier the Newser reported that Waya Snowpaw DJed from 5 to 6PM. We didn't had anyone present at the time, and as he was scheduled to play assumed he did. It turned out he had passed away a few days before.

 

Bixyl Shuftan