Unless you've been living under a rock, you already know about the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina and the resulting flood. Although US Music is headquartered in Mundelein, IL, and the Eden factory is located in Montrose, MN, we have many friends down south. As soon as the storm hit, USM employees began to seek ways to help out.

When USM owner Rudy Schlacher and COO Garry Gryzcan learned of an in-office drive for donations, they devised a matching plan. Garry challenged USM employees to raise $1000 dollars. Once we reached that goal Garry matched it with $1000 of his own. Rudy will then match the total - including Garry's contribution. This means that every dollar donated by a US Music employee will go twice as far in helping the survivors. More contributions are coming in every day.

Anolher way Eden is helping is to provide loaner amplifiers to displaced musicians. This project is being coordinated through NOAH (New Orleans And Houston). This non-profit group is operating under the umbrella of the Musician's Benevolent Society of Houston to provide housing, clothing, food, instruments and other gear, and help displaced musicians find work. Eden will be shipping bass amplifiers for the organization to loan to players needing gear to work. The details are just now being worked out. Look for a press release on the web site soon.

Eden's Special Projects Coordinator Lane Baldwin also found another way to help. For the last few weeks, he's been working with Dale Galatas (guitar) and Anthony La Guardia (drums), two Katrina refugees who came to Danville, IL, to avoid the storm.

Dale and Anthony had managed to get a gig for tips, hoping to make enough money to return to Louisiana to assess storm damage and perhaps salvage more belongings. While shopping for replacement gear, they saw Lane's business card at a local music store. With nothing to lose, they called to see if he'd be interested in filling the bottom end for them.

"I almost said no," Baldwin recounts of the conversation. "But then Dale explained why they were here and what they were doing. It was instantly a no-brainer. Of course I'd help!"

Lane met his new band mates at the load-in for their first gig at Wheeler's Uptown Tap in Danville. Following the cook's suggestion, the three dubbed themselves Stranded as a nod to the situation. Fifteen minutes later, the three were tearing through "All Along the Watchtower" and having a ball. Although the crowd was small (the bar holds about 60 people, max), it was very supportive. By the end of the night, the tip jar was full and the band had several leads for other local venues.

Over the next few days, Dale and Anthony managed to find several more gigs in Danville as well as in nearby Westville and Hoopeston. In all, the band performed nine times in nine days. Thanks to lots of hustle, the band also managed to drum up a significant amount of publicity, including a mention on the ABC Channel 15 (Champaign, IL) Evening News, a page three article (with photo) in The Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette, and a last-minute News Brief article in the Danville Commercial News.

The icing on the cake was to be the lead story in a page one article (above the fold) on Katrina survivors in Danville. In its print version, the article included two pictures, one of the entire band, and another of Dale at the microphone. The on-line version includes the band photo. The publicity went a long way toward attracting support at the various shows.

Stranded is (left to right) Anthony La Guardia (drums), Lane Baldwin (bass & vocals) and Dale Galatas (guitar & vocals). The band was formed when Anthony and Dale evacuated New Orleans, landing in Danville, IL, to wait out Hurricane Katrina.

Dale and Anthony have now returned to the New Orleans area to assess the damage. At present, it appears that they'll be able to stay and begin the long, arduous process of rebuilding their lives. If they are unable to stay, however, the two plan to return to Danville and Stranded will continue to seek bookings. "I truly hope they can put their lives together again back home," Baldwin said. "But if they do come back, I'll be right there on stage with them. It's been a real pleasure to work with them both."

Check out the article on Stranded on the Commercial News website.

Read Lane's blog entries about Stranded. (Scroll down and begin with "Overcoming Tragedy".)

Learn more about NOAH and how you can help.

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