The handmade sign for the humanitarian benefit for Ukraine at the Brown County Playhouse on March 24. The sign resembles the nation’s flag, which symbolizes blue skies over fields of grain.
Abigail Youmans | The Democrat
Local musicians took the stage at the Brown County Playhouse on March 24 with a goal much greater than sharing music.
The goal instead was to perform a concert that benefited people across the globe. Donations were accepted at the door for tickets and all funds will be donated to Ukrainian Red Cross Society.
At the end of the night, a total of $4,895 had been raised to send to Ukraine.
Tensions between Russia and Ukraine came to a head when Russia launched a full-scale invasion on its neighbor on Feb. 24.
Russia had deployed an estimated 175,000 troops at various points near Ukraine’s border in December.
Russian missiles reached the capital city, Kyiv on Feb. 25. As of March 17, Russian forces were roughly 15 miles north from the city center and had failed to cross the Irpin River, according to BBC News.
Russia claimed its forces had taken over Kherson, a port city on the southern coast on the seventh day of the war.
According to the United Nations, 3 million refugees had fled Ukraine since the war began.
According to their website, “the mission of the URCS’ activity is to ensure human life protection, prevention and mitigation of human suffering during armed conflicts, natural disasters, catastrophes and accidents, support to medical services of the armed forces and public healthcare services, assist public authorities of Ukraine in their activities in the humanitarian field.”
Many in the nearly full theater at the Playhouse were wearing blue and yellow, the bold hues of the Ukrainian flag that symbolize blue skies over golden wheat fields.
The idea to host the benefit was brought to Playhouse Executive Director Amanda Webb by local musician John Whitcomb.
Whitcomb said that when he saw coverage of the war and the devastation that Ukraine was facing, he was reminded of a story. It was the story of a man on an old sailing vessel who was seasick and confined to his quarters below deck. A call came out on the ship of a man overboard. The man, trapped in his quarters, thought to himself, “How am I going to help?”
He lit a lantern and stuck it out of his window, lighting the face of the man overboard in the water. A life raft was thrown to him and he was saved.
In seeing innocent people driven from their homes and killed during the war in Ukraine, Whitcomb had a similar thought to the man on the ship: What can Brown County residents do to help?
“We live so far away, but we can do something. I just thought ‘we have to do something,’” he said.
He reached out to Webb and then a collaborative effort of contacting musicians to play at the benefit concert was underway.
Once word was out, they ended up having to turn performers away because there were too many, Whitcomb said.
Even though he hated doing that, he said they could still help by coming to the benefit.
Before the benefit, Whitcomb said he was looking forward to making new acquaintances and furthering the strength of a “giving community.”
He wanted people to leave the concert thinking that these people, though thousands of miles away, are our neighbors.
The lights were left on in the auditorium as different local names — like Poets and Politicians, Kenan Rainwater, Steve Plessinger, the Blankenship Band, Terry Lee’s Rockabilly Band, Lou Stant and more — graced the stage and the audience danced.
The night took a serious turn when a local man shared stories of a country very dear to him and his family.
David Hayes lived in Ukraine for several years starting in 1992, a year after the country gained independence from Russia.
He, his wife and two children made connections to individuals with whom they remain friends today.
Hayes shared some of their stories, painting a personal and compassionate picture of those who are involved in today’s conflict.
People they encountered in their time in Ukraine showed them how much they loved their country, Hayes said.
These personal stories involved friends, Hayes said. “They have been through a lot.”
“Ukrainian people have fought hard for freedom. They’ve given everything for freedom.”
