A local band that lost tens of thousands of dollars in musical equipment in a devastating downtown fire early this year says it has the community — and a mysterious benefactor — to thank for helping its members get back on their feet.
When the blaze tore through a multi-use building at Portage Avenue and Langside Street, it destroyed a number of businesses, as well as a popular rehearsal space for Winnipeg musicians. One of the bands affected was The Ripperz, a country-and-blues-tinged punk rock combo that had been using the jam space for years.
The band’s Dan Thomas said they lost an estimated $30,000 in gear — none of which ended up getting covered by insurance — and that’s when the community stepped in to help with a GoFundMe fundraiser.
“As anyone is after a fire, you’re faced with picking up the pieces. A friend of ours suggested a GoFundMe and they really wanted to help out, which is great,” said Thomas.
“But then the topic in the band came up that this is music equipment, there’s people a lot worse off than we are. Is this really the right thing to do?”
After being convinced by friends that a fundraiser was the right move, the GoFundMe went live, and within a day, the band had surpassed its goal, with donations from friends, fellow local artists and an anonymous supporter.
“We actually did have a mysterious donor. The last donation took us to the goal and I think it was around $7,000,” he said.
“It was one mysterious donation. We’ve been throwing around theories (about who the person is), but we have no idea.
“It was pretty overwhelming, incredibly appreciated. To have it turn around so quickly was pretty astonishing to say the least.”
The century-old building, known as the Kirkland Block, took months to demolish, with freezing cold conditions and concerns about the structural stability extending the time needed to take it down.
While no one was injured in the blaze, the owners of a convenience store located in the building — which also housed offices for the West End BIZ and several small businesses — were displaced by the incident.
Thomas said his band, which was able to replace its equipment and secure a new rehearsal space a few months after the fire, is now back at it, performing Saturday at the Park Theatre alongside Daniel Greaves of iconic Winnipeg rockers The Watchmen.
And they’ve re-examined the way their gear is insured, after getting denied across the board when they tried to claim their losses in February.
“We’ve teamed up with a musician-specific insurance, so everything is covered against fire, theft, breakage … something could get knocked over at a show and break and it’s covered, so we’re pretty comfortable now and confident,” he said.
“In the event that lightning strikes twice, I think we’re covered.”
The lesson of the entire ordeal, he said, is that Winnipeg’s music community — and the city as a whole — stepped up to help out in a time of need, something he hopes The Ripperz will be able to pay forward in the future.
“It’s Winnipeg — our city takes a bit of the brunt of the joke, but I wasn’t surprised, we’ve got a phenomenal community.”
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