Fundraiser for tornado-damaged First Nation draws hundreds

Hundreds of people took part in a benefit concert Wednesday for a Manitoba community ripped up by a tornado earlier this summer.

Thousands of dollars were raised from ticket sales and silent auction bids on Wednesday at the The Pyramid Cabaret in Winnipeg, organizer Rhonda Head said. All the money raised will go toward helping rebuild homes at Long Plain First Nation, which was hit by a storm and a tornado on July 20.

Between 150 and 160 residents of Long Plain First Nation are still homeless after the storm destroyed several homes, lifting at least one off its foundation, flipped vehicles and uprooted trees.

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"It's changed the landscape," said Long Plain Chief Dennis Meeches. At least 47 homes were damaged, he said in the days after the storm.

Head, an Indigenous musician, said she followed Facebook posts by friends in Long Plain throughout the night of the storm, and the next day she called Meeches to offer her help.

Multiple musicians played during the all-night event, including Eagle and Hawk, Jerry Sereda, Staggering Haggards, Lone Wolf Theory, Mary Mahler, Ali Fontaine and Rescued By Dragonflies.

RAW: Long Plain elder grateful for benefit concert

8 years ago

Duration 1:25

Peter Yellowquill says the fundraiser to help Long Plain rebuild after the tornado last month has lifted people's spirits.

Peter Yellowquill, an elder in Long Plain First Nation, said the concert meant a great deal to the community.

"[It's] good for the heart, for our spirit, to know people do care," Yellowquill said.

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​Meeches called the fundraiser a "tremendous event."

"Just very, very happy people came out and supported us," he said.

While rebuilding has begun, there's still a lot of work left to do to return Long Plain to normal. The extra cash will help, Meeches said.

"We're working on the repairing of our homes now and some of our community buildings, so that's coming along okay," he said. 

He added he is working with Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada and the Red Cross to make sure children living in hotels with their families make the transition to school in the fall as smoothly as possible.

"There will be some challenges with that, living in hotels. That's difficult for them," he said.

One member of the Long Plain community notably absent from Wednesday's event was Lisa Meeches.

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The Indigenous advocate and award-winning filmmaker suffered a stroke earlier this week and remains in hospital.

"We're hoping and praying that she'll have a full recovery," Meeches said.