Recovery
Co-ops, Black Eyed Peas in Flood Aid
Co-ops, Hollywood and hip-hop came together at the North Dakota state fairgrounds to help victims of severe summer floods rebuild their lives.
The Black Eyed Peas perform a benefit concert for flood relief in Minot, N.D. (Photo By: The Associated Press)
The Grammy award-winning Black Eyed Peas were the featured performers for the sold out concert, held Sept. 3. Some 16,000 fans, including co-op members and personnel from nearby Minot Air Force Base, scarfed up the $100 tickets.
“The concert was a complete sellout. The event raised more than $1.3 million and it was an incredible show,” said Mary Klecker-Green, supervisor of public and member communications at Basin Electric Power Cooperative, Bismarck.
“The Black Eyed Peas went all out for this concert,” said Klecker-Green. “It was clear they put a lot of heart behind this concert as well.”
Klecker-Green said the group’s connection to the community was clearly apparent from their introduction through the closing number. Fergie, the band’s female vocalist, is married to actor Josh Duhamel, a Minot native who still has family and business ties to the city.
Duhamel, known for his roles in the “Transformers” movies, was instrumental in putting the show together.
“All I did was call my wife,” the actor told the crowd before the performance.
For her part, Fergie told the audience, “This is a beautiful, beautiful vision for us, especially for me because I have family here now.”
Basin Electric joined Minot-based Central Power Electric Cooperative and Velva-based Verendrye Electric Cooperative as concert co-sponsors. The $25,000 contributed by the co-ops was part of $800,000 in corporate contributions to the Flood Recovery Fund being coordinated by the Minot Area Relief Foundation.
About 12,000 people have been displaced since flooding along the Souris River heavily damaged or destroyed some 4,000 homes.
Fergie noted that despite the destruction, Minot seems eager to rebuild.
“It might be small, but it has the biggest heart in America,” Fergie yelled to the crowd. “North Dakota, we love you so much.”
Tags: Commitment to Community, Flooding, Recovery, Weather