Community members hand Bailey and Wood employees donations during the Fundraiser for Whiteland in the Bailey and Wood parking lot Wednesday.
Noah Crenshaw | Daily Journal
Steps away from destruction, the Whiteland community came together to help those in need.
Businesses from around the town and beyond came together Wednesday to raise money for victims of the March 31 tornado as part of Fundraiser for Whiteland. The fundraiser was hosted in the parking lot of Bailey and Wood Financial Group’s headquarters in the heart of Whiteland.
Hundreds of people came out for free food, drinks, music and even axe throwing. During the event, organizers collected donations for the victims, all of which will be donated to the Johnson County Community Foundation, said Bailey Wood, events and social media director for Bailey and Wood.
After hearing about the devastation in Whiteland, Bailey and Wood immediately wanted to organize an event to give back to the community and raise funds for those affected, said Mike Wood, a Whiteland-native and the company’s founder and owner. The company’s headquarters was affected by the twister, sustaining some roof damage, but not to the extent of their neighbors across the street, he said.
They also wanted to have an event to say thank you to first responders and utility workers, who worked day and night to help in the aftermath.
“This community supported us, so it was one of those things that we felt obligated to give back to them,” Mike Wood said.
As the company worked to organize the fundraiser, they expected very few organizations to take part. But as soon as they announced the fundraiser, the calls poured from people and organizations who wanted to help too, Bailey Wood said.
“It’s been so amazing to see just the whole community come out and come together,” she said.
While Bailey and Wood put the fundraiser on, they don’t want the credit for it, Bailey Wood said.
“It’s really just a community that came together and helped put this whole thing on,” she said.
On Wednesday, more than five organizations set up booths and took part in the fundraiser. Whit’s Inn grilled burgers and hot dogs, Heartland Ambulance Service handed out refreshments and a local family sold homemade cotton candy, with donations going back to victims, Bailey Wood said.
Bailey and Wood grilled food as well. Ice cream was also handed out, and the company held a wine raffle too. Johnson County Axe Throwing offered free axe throwing on their new mobile trailer. A local masseuse even offered free massages to those who donated, she said.
Eric Hamblen performed live music, and he asked for any tips to go toward donations instead. A local roofing company also had a booth, along with Beeson Mechanical Service, which had a raffle for a free HVAC unit installation in exchange for donations.
Whit’s Inn was one of several local businesses that reached out to offer assistance for the fundraiser. Mark Clark, one of the bar’s owners, knew he wanted to help right away.
“I wanted to make sure all the money stayed right here in Johnson County,” Clark said. “So I called (Mike) and said, ‘Hey, if you need anybody to help, we’ll lend a hand and bring food, bring our grill.’”
Clark even asked fellow business owner John Gladish, the owner of Tried & True Alehouse, if he wanted to help too. Both men, along with Clark’s employee Jeff Barnard, were out grilling throughout the day Wednesday.
Prior to the fundraiser, Mike Wood had actually approached Beeson Mechanical to brainstorm ideas to help the community, and Bailey and Wood came up with the idea of the fundraiser, said Leslie Beeson, who co-owns the company with her husband Kent.
“I told (Mike) to let me know what he wants, and we’ll be here,” Leslie Beeson said.
Whiteland Fire Chief Eric Funkhouser was not surprised to see the turnout at Wednesday’s fundraiser. From Day 1, the community has been out in force to help their neighbors, including Bailey and Wood, he said.
“They’ve always been a great community partner,” Funkhouser said. “Anytime there’s anything that happens in this area, they’re the first ones to want to be a part of it (and help).”
Joe Sayler, president of the Whiteland Town Council, was also not surprised by the amount of community support. People have come out to help in a way that is unrivaled, and they’re happy to do it, he said.
“Between everybody in the town who’s helping out everybody else, and then everybody around — the other municipalities,” Sayler said. “Greenwood has sent employees and heavy equipment, Franklin has sent heavy equipment, the county, Bargersville. That night there were emergency vehicles from the entire county and Marion County for that matter. It has been overwhelmingly positive.”
Since the tornado, Beeson Mechanical has also posted regular updates on social media about resources available for the community. The Beesons knew they couldn’t do all of the work that needed to happen themselves, but knew they could get the information out, Leslie Beeson said.
Treating the updates like their business, Leslie Beeson has been heading up the office side, making calls and connections. Her husband Kent has had boots on the ground to see what people are doing and what they need, she said.
“I’ve just really been trying to keep that Facebook page updated because people don’t know where to go,” Leslie Beeson said. “And they can literally walk to our office and say, ‘what do we do?’ and we can help guide from there.”
The goal is to continue helping until every last need is met. It’s going to take a long time for that to happen, she said.
“We don’t have to deal with any red tape or any kind of of the chaos that some places have to deal with, which is nice because we can be an immediate help and that’s all we care about,” Beeson said.
Like Bailey and Wood, the Beesons don’t want credit for anything they’re doing. It’s God bringing people together to do the right thing, Leslie Beeson said.
“I tell people I don’t want to make a dime off of what these victims are going through,” she said. “We want to be here to help guide people.”
