NEW YORK (WKZO-AM) — It was billed as “Kalamazoo Strong: A Benefit Cabaret,” and it was on stage for one night only in New York City.
It is perhaps the most unique and star-studded of the memorials and fundraisers that have popped up since Kalamazoo’s mass shootings last month, where six were killed and two others were severely wounded.
Over a half-dozen actors, singers and musicians, all of whom have roots in the Kalamazoo area but now make their living on Broadway,staged a musical cabaret and fundraiser in New York City last night.
The crowd was filled with Western Michigan University alumni and former Kalamazoo residents who now live in the Big Apple.
Meanwhile, Taco Bob’s is coming to the aid of the Smith family of Mattawan after they lost two family members during the mass murders last month.
The small west Michigan chain of Mexican restaurants announced it will donate 20 percent of its sales Wednesday to the “Tacos for Tyler” fund. Tyler Smith, 17, was killed by gunfire with his father, Richard Smith, 53, at Seelye Kia on Stadium Drive.
The chain has seven locations, including four in Kalamazoo and one each in Portage, Vicksburg and Grand Rapids.
Plumbers and pipefitters are already raising funds for the family.
