Friday, September 26, 2008

The Magic of the Night


By CHRIS MILLSPAUGH

There was a lot of love in the room Tuesday night at River Run Lodge in Ketchum. The town turned out in force for the Lisa Henak benefit led by Lauri Raney and her angels. There were raffle prizes, a silent auction, Larry Flynn, Mike Murphy and the fabulous band The Heaters to entertain the flock of locals who paid $20 at the door, all to raise money to help Lisa through her battle with breast cancer. The crowning moment of the night came when an ensemble of local breast cancer survivors gathered together on the dance floor in solidarity for Ms. Henak and, bedecked with garlands of flowers, sent out their message of love and hope. Later a call was made to Lisa in Seattle where she is recuperating from surgery, and as The Heaters played "Lean on Me" the whole crowd sang along to her. Not a dry eye in the house.

What a town. Friends of Lisa's, filled with sadness and fond memories of Main Street's burned-out hangout, Whiskey Jacques', made their way to the River Run Lodge, which was donated through the courtesy of Sun Valley Co. owners Earl and Carol Holding, to raise thousands of dollars for their Ketchum sister.

What is it about this town that takes care of its own time and time again? Perhaps it is magic? It certainly is resilient because it occurs on a regular basis over and over again whenever one of us has a run of misfortune and needs help.

It was the Wood River Valley at its finest once more. The Castle Rock Fire couldn't defeat us last year. The fire on Main Street caused us to pull together again last week. And, last night, the threat of a dreaded disease to a fellow citizen motivated us one more time. We rallied together to fight in the only way we know how—sharing and giving. We could all feel it—in the magic of the night.

Nice talking to you ...




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