Thousands Rock To Raise Money For Wildfire Relief
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- Thousands rocked to the music of Metallica, Dead and Company, Dave Matthews and other stars Thursday night at San Francisco's AT&T Park to raise money for the victims of last month's deadly wildfires.
The sold-out Band Together Bay Area benefit concert also invited fire victims and first responders to attend free of charge. Of the 38,000 seats, 20 percent were reserved for them.
During the concert, the names of the 43 victims were displayed on a giant screen and stories done by local television stations on the impact of the fires were played in between sets.
"None of us lost our homes but grateful that such a big event's going on for all the victims that lost their houses, we've seen the numbers and it's astronomical," said Santa Rosa resident Alexandria Aldrich.
Santa Rosa was particularly hard hit by the Tubbs fire which burned 36,807 acres, destroyed 2,800 buildings within the city and claimed 19 lives.
Organizers said 100 percent of the ticket sales were going to an emergency relief fund lead by Tipping Point. Bay Area sports legends also made appearances throughout the show including Joe Montana.
Local rapper G-Eazy was among the performers. He said when he was approached to perform, he quickly agreed.
"I was already waiting to see how I can figure out how I can help and then the opportunity to play here at this stadium," he said. "To play with Metallica, Dead and Company -- these are Bay Area super legends, super heroes."
Even before Thursday night's concert, Tipping Point said it's fundraising efforts had been well supported with more then $15 million in donations already collected.
Below is a list of ways that supporters of the cause can contribute to this fundraising effort:
- Donate through YouTube - Viewers livestreaming through the Metallica YouTube channel can donate through YouTube on the night of the show. Google will match all donations made through the YouTube livestream and Text to Give up to $1 million until January 1, 2018.
- Text to Give - Donate $25 by texting TOGETHER to 20222 until January 1, 2018 (standard messaging rates apply). Google will match all donations made through Text to Give and the YouTube livestream up to $1 million until January 1, 2018.
- Double your donation with Oath - Oath, a global media and technology company with brands like HuffPost, AOL, and Yahoo, is matching up to $100,000 to Tipping Point Emergency Relief Fund. Donate through their customized donation page
- Donate through Outside Lands - Outside Lands Works will match donations from Outside Lands community to the Tipping Point Emergency Relief Fund up to $25,000 through their customized donation page
- Use Bitcoin to donate - Tipping Point is accepting donations through Bitcoin
- Create a Crowdrise Page - Create a Crowdrise page and encourage your network to donate to Tipping Point Emergency Relief Fund
- Donate through BandTogetherBayArea.org - Visit the Band Together Bay Area website to make a donation
