May 06--While the exact total was still being tallied late Sunday, organizers of Fest for West said they were optimistic they'd be hitting their $20,000 fundraising goal from a benefit for the Central Texas community as it recovers from a fertilizer plant explosion.
The event was spearheaded by members of the Downtown Bryan Association and Big Red Drum Entertainment, who put the fundraising festival together in about two weeks with the help of the city of Bryan, the Bryan Fire Department and the Bryan Police Department, along with more than 100 volunteers and contributions from many businesses throughout the community.
Main Street in Downtown Bryan between Palace Theater and the La Salle Hotel was blocked off as attendees filled the street to mingle, bid on silent auction items, eat barbecue and, in many cases, have a few drinks.
On either side of the street -- at the Palace Theater and at the Grand Stafford Theater -- bands such as Ben Morris and the Great American Boxcar Chorus, The Docs and Brandon Rhyder performed throughout the day.
Kristy Petty, owner of Village Cafe and a member of the Downtown Bryan Association, said organizing an event like Fest for West on such short notice came with obvious stresses, but the willingness of local leaders who took on specialized tasks made for smooth preparations.
"All we needed to do was ask," she said. "No one said no."
West native Matt Polansky, a 22-year-old Texas A&M history major, performed two songs inside the Stafford on Sunday afternoon as a way of doing his part to help both his communities.
"I know that West is a strong community, but I think one reason the people are going to be able to recover is because of things like this."
Krista Watt, a 38-year-old Bryan native who works in downtown, said she and her friends had been there since 2 p.m. enjoying the festivities in support of West and in celebration of Cinco de Mayo.
The lively group of eight or so had taken over one of the tables set up in the middle of Main Street. As the sun shifted and the shade extended over their seating area, they stood up to move the table and chairs they'd claimed back into the light -- prompting other chilly people in the area to do the same with their table.
Earlier, Petty had mentioned the event was about people being "comfortable and casual" and enjoying Downtown Bryan while contributing to a worthy cause.
Directly outside the Palace Theater entrance, 10-year-old Gentry Gonzales had set up her Lemonade Day stand with the help of her father, Bryan firefighter Ponch Gonzales.
Gentry was promising to donate 20 percent of her proceeds to the families of Ricky Mantey Jr. and Mitch Moran -- the Bryan firefighters injured in a February fire at the Knights of Columbus Hall that took the lives of two Bryan firefighters.
"I heard they'd just gotten out of the hospital, and I knew they'd be needing some help," Gentry said, explaining why she'd chosen to donate to the firefighters. "I wanted to do something that was going to make them happy."
By 6 p.m., she'd raised $200 and still had an hour to go.
Gentry's dad was sent to West the day after the explosion and stayed there for nine days as a family liaison with the Texas Line of Duty Death Task Force.
Gonzales said it was hard to leave the family he'd been assigned to, especially knowing that not all of their questions had been answered because of the ongoing investigation. Like the Bryan firefighters have been since the fire that took two of their own, Gonzales said the people of West will have to take things "week by week."
Copyright 2013 - The Eagle, Bryan, Texas
