Blockbuster BBQ: Scores arrive for Nippon fundraiser at Bob's Sporting Goods
A quickly organized fundraiser in front of a downtown Longview local business drew scores of locals Saturday seeking to give what they could to help the families forever changed by Tuesday's fatal Nippon Dynawave tank rupture.
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People lined up across the Bob's Sporting Goods parking lot Saturday afternoon, waiting for barbecue in numbers too numerous to count. The blockbuster line overflowed well into the 12th Avenue sidewalk as of shortly after 1 p.m.
Matt Schlecht, a third-generation owner of the family-owned outdoor store at 1111 Hudson St., said that credit for the fundraiser goes to his friends Adam and Rose Scattergood, who own Big Smoke in Little Kalama.
The Scattergoods reached out to him on Wednesday, asking if they could use his parking lot for a benefit fundraiser to help the workers and families affected by the catastrophic chemical spill.
"Absolutely," Schlecht remembers telling them.
Together they brought in other Pacific Northwest barbecuers, including Smokin' Frank's BBQ, Big Smoke BBQ and the competitive barbecue team Iron Haug BBQ of Covington.
Schlecht said a "continuous stream of people" came forward asking how they could help. Domino's, for instance, donated 80 pizzas for free to the community event and had a tent staffed for the fundraiser. The American Legion sold popcorn and kettle corn.
Schlecht said he was not surprised to see such a large turnout because he has grown up and lived in this community all his life. He said he knows this is a community that cares about its people, and it's what sets Longview apart from other places.
"They show up when they need to, and they will show up in droves," Schlect said.
All funds raised are going to the community fund for Nippon Dynawave workers organized by the Cowlitz Wahkiakum Central Labor Council and the Longview Kelso Building Trades Council.
Nippon community benefit barbecue at Bob's Sporting Goods
Smokin' Frank' BBQ adds more charcoal to the grill in this photo taken Saturday, May 30 during a barbecue fundraiser at the Bob's Sporting Goods parking lot in Longview. The event benefited workers impacted by the Nippon Dynawave disaster.
At the event, Central Labor Council president Terry Carlson said he could hardly find the right words to describe the turnout and support.
"Make a guy get a little emotional," Carlson said. "It's amazing and beautiful."
Carlson said that since the Tuesday morning incident at Nippon he has taken PTO at his regular job at Weyerhaeuser to spend his days helping families gathered at the Association of Western Pulp and Paperworkers building.
"It's been a month in a four-day week," Carlson said, describing long days sitting with families and helping out. Sometimes he just listens; sometimes the families have specific needs.
"A lot of it is just stuff they didn't think about," Carlson said.
Dominos
Domino's donated 80 pizzas to the Saturday, May 30 fundraiser in the parking lot of Bob's Sporting Goods in Longview. All proceeds from the event are going to a community fund benefitting workers impacted by the Nippon Dynawave chemical spill and their families.
Carlson said the community fund was originally set up with funeral costs in mind. Many of the victims were young men who hadn't considered burial expenses before.
People can donate to affected families at www.cwclc.org.
According to Diana Winther, Secretary/Treasurer of the Central Labor Council, the state covers a certain amount through the Department of Labor & Industries, but "everything is more and more expensive."
Overflow crowd
A line spills over to the 12th Avenue sidewalk in Longview on May 30 during a barbecue benefit fundraiser at Bob's Sporting Goods to help the families impacted by the Nippon Dynawave chemical blast.
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