The smells of jerk chicken, brats and hot dogs filled the air but the vibe of a festival quickly disappeared as attendees carried garden rakes, bleach and diapers.
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The Roosevelt Park Pavilion in Gary swelled with wall-to-wall people drawn to Monday’s storm relief benefit sponsored by NBA star Tyrese Halliburton of the Indianapolis Pacers and food critic Keith Lee.
Both men pledged $15,000 each for the aid event after Lee shared Gary’s storm woes in a video to support relief efforts.
The city of Gary, the Salvation Army and Ace Hardware joined the effort.
Belle Dean, of Gary, carried a poster to raise money for her aunt and uncle, Rose and Floyd Franklin, who live in Gary’s Glen Ryan subdivision near Miller.
She said the family home was destroyed in the Aug. 11 storm and she launched a GoFundMe page to raise money to rebuild the home.
Dean, a 2004 Roosevelt graduate, said the couple helped raise her when her mother needed support herself and her father was deported back to Haiti in the 1990s.
She said her aunt and uncle, both retired, are homeless after the derecho blew through Gary.
A former flight attendant, Dean works for ABA Therapy, assisting autistic children.
“They haven’t had any help,” she said of her aunt and uncle’s plight. “They’re staying with friends.”
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Nearby, Keshonda Philon, of Gary, talked about the ordeal without power for nearly two weeks.
“Our power just came back today,” she said. She and her three children live in the Oak Knoll apartment complex on Gary’s west side.
Her older children, ages 5 and 6, attend the Frankie Woods McCullough Academy while her youngest, Izzy, is 3.
Philon said the family used candles after the power went out and family members supported each other.
She’s glad Gov. Mike Braun has called for an investigation into the Northern Indiana Public Service Co.’s handling of the storm recovery.
The investigation would evaluate NIPSCO’s vegetation management policies and right-of-way maintenance. The Indiana Utility Consumer Counselor was instructed to file a complaint and seek a review from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission.
“I’m with him,” Philon said of Braun’s action. “Why do we have to wait for two weeks and y’all charging us an arm and a leg? Even the cat is frustrated.”
Lauren Cohan, of Gary, agreed.
“I think there needs to be an investigation. There’s trees and bushes over power lines, they didn’t clear alleys. It’s unacceptable. Kids have been stressed, there’s no hot showers.”
Cohan said her family who live in an apartment near 20th Avenue and Pierce Street, got power late Sunday night.
“Everyone was shouting and screaming and banging on doors,” she said.
Tyrone Jackson, vice president of the Gary Firefighters Association, said he was working Aug. 11 when the storm hit.
“Miller and the northeast side were hit really bad. The whole city is bad. We had to stop and cut down vegetation to get to a fire,” he said.
Carole Carlson is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
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