“How could you not want to help,” asked Gina Powell, organizer of the Stewart family benefit on Saturday at the Eagles Club in Galion. The benefit was held on behalf of the Stewart family, which lost two children, Connor, 5, and Elizabeth, 3, and their father, Jordan, 25, in a house fire on Nov. 18.
“The whole community wanted to do something, and I just got the ball rolling basically,” said Powell, who is a friend of Tony Stewart—the father of Jordan Stewart.
A crowd had already formed before the fundraiser officially kicked off at 1 p.m. The Ohio State-Michigan game was playing on big screen televisions at the club, and Powell said that one of the televisions was donated for the day by Showplace Rent-to-Own in Galion.
At 4 p.m. there was an auction. “Everybody in Galion donated something,” Powell said while looking at the wide array of items.
Powell was continuously approached by people who asked where they should put their donations, and she anticipated that many more people would show up to the event later on.
“I think as the day goes on, especially when the game is over, I think this place will be wall to wall with people,” she said.
Later in the afternoon, Powell said there would be an appearance by “Prince” Charles Williams, a former professional boxer in the Light Heavyweight division. And the band Sneaky Pete was scheduled to perform.
Brittany Stewart, wife of Jordan and mother of Connor and Elizabeth, did not attend the event. Powell said the she is currently visiting her family in Oregon and noted, “She said to me directly, ‘I’ll be back in January. This is my home.’”
Other members of the Stewart family were present, however, including Tony and Vicki Stewart, Jordan’s father and stepmother.
Vicki Stewart commented, “The outpouring of love from this community has been unreal, and it’s what’s getting us through this. It really, honestly is.”
“I don’t even know how to thank everybody,” she said with tears welling up in her eyes.
Laina Vanbuskirk and Heather Lawrence of Galion said they know Tony and Vicki Stewart. They attended the benefit, Lawrence said, because, “It’s a sad tragedy for one, and I think for something like this the community needs to come together.”
Both Vanbuskirk and Lawrence gathered donations from businesses in Galion and Bucyrus for door prizes and auction items. “We got such a great, great outpouring from this town and Bucyrus,” noted Vanbuskirk.
Vanbuskirk said that her workplace, Golden Hawk Transportation in Crestline, donated $500.
Powell was appreciative of the community’s support and noted, “We couldn’t have done any of this without the community. They’ve just been amazing.”
She shared that prior to the benefit $2,000 had already been raised.
People can continue to donate to help support the family. Checks or money orders, made out to Brittany Stewart, can be mailed to AA American Bail Bonds at 126 Harding Way East, Galion, OH 44833.
