CHICOPEE — Otan Vargas, Trailer Trash and Black Cadillac will be performing at View Street Tavern, 92 View St., on Friday, March 22 at 8 p.m. to help raise money for the local veterans.
There will be a $20 cover charge at the door and all the proceeds will be going to Project New Hope.
According to its website, “Project New Hope Inc. has supported veterans and their families for 14 years. Sully’s food and baby pantries provide basic needs, retreats provide healing opportunities and the assistance program helps to ‘connect the dots’ for those struggling to navigate current government systems.”
Vargas talked about why he wanted to help put together this event to raise money for Project New Hope.
“I love their approach because there not just helping them through like a doctor or a psychiatrist, they put them in an environment that will benefit them or help them mentally or spiritually get better by doing retreats,” Vargas said.
Vargas said that he has been supporting veterans ever since he came to the country in 2006 and knew he wanted to give back to those who risked their lives for others.
He said, “I was aware of what happened to our veterans in 2012 when they came home from Iraq and most of them became homeless or most suffered from PTSD. I came from a different country but I respect those who fought for our country so we can have the things we do. It’s not right that they were homeless.”
Vargas asked on Facebook if anyone wanted to help him start an event that will help local veterans and he said a lot of people chimed in with interest in helping.
“I was happy about that because it is not just raising money, it is also spreading awareness. Sometimes spreading awareness is more important because more people can learn about a cause. Even if they don’t have money [to donate] they can respect the veterans,” Vargas added.
Vargas said that he is also hoping to have a table set up at the event with representatives from Project New Hope to talk more about their organization.
“Our job is the entertain people and they will be working explaining what the money could be used for or just more information about what they do,” Vargas said.
Vargas added that he reached out to multiple musicians who wanted to perform at this event and was only able to pick a few based on the slots available.
He said, “I asked a lot of my friends and there were a lot of musicians who wanted to play but unfortunately there were only a few spots or not available for the date. Black Cadillac is a cover band for a lot of rock songs and also Trailer Trash is sort of a legend in the area, so both are known in Western Massachusetts and then myself and my band. I think these three bands will generate a lot of money.”
Vargas talked about why he picked Project New Hope as the beneficiary for this event.
He said, “I have been looking for nonprofits to help out for this event and they’re the first ones I thought about before I considered other ones, and they are local, so I picked them to be the beneficiary because I like to pick local nonprofits.”
Although the benefit has not happened yet, Vargas said he excited with the “buzz” it has generated so far and is looking forward to performing, seeing the crowd and raising money.
He added, “It’s always a privilege to help out people who help us out. We owe them for our freedom and the luxury to live in this country. When I help our veterans, it’s a pleasure that I can contribute in that way and especially in our towns.”
