On Friday, May 20th, East Williamsburg’s IDIO Gallery buzzed with supporters who came out to give back at the Bushwick Fire Benefit Show. The fundraiser, hosted by yours truly and my collaborator, Kaitlyn Mills, leading lady of electro-poppy LANTRNS, was created to gain funds and collect household items for the victims of the 6-alarm fire that happened in our neighborhood. The tragedy, off DeKalb Avenue in March, left about 50 people homeless in Bushwick. We realized, after hearing the news a few months ago, that we had to do something as new members of the Bushwick community.
The Benefit Show, sponsored by Brooklyn’s ElevtrTrax and Braven Brewing Company, worked with local musicians, DJ Rob Karpay and ambient, indie duo, Letters to Nepal, to build out the set list with LANTRNS headlining the show. Additional art was provided by illustrator Jeremy Nguyen for the show poster, and photographer Elizabeth Bick who hanged portraits of Latina women within the venue space from her series, Beatification.
Monetary donations from the night have already been sent to Make the Road, a Brooklyn non-profit working directly with the fire victims. All goods that were brought to the venue will be hand-delivered to another organization who is assisting the families where the need is greatest.
Kaitlyn and I want to thank each of our partners, supporters, and friends, let alone the survivors that lost their homes. They gave us the inspiration that uniquely pushed us to plan this special event. We hope to continue on with similar benefits in the future, supporting local, special needs causes.”
(Photography by Darragh Dandurand)