thePULSEBy K. Ashton-Magnuson
The Unite The United Foundation has announced a fundraiser auction for St. Louis native Johnny Venus, drummer for the rapidly up-and-coming indie band Greek Fire and drum tech/stage manager for internationally known rock band Story of the Year.
Upon returning from an amazing and successful Story of the Year/Greek Fire tour of Japan in February, Johnny was diagnosed with leukemia. His disease emerged with virtually no warning. Within hours of a blood test, Johnny was admitted to a hospital where he remains under fantastic care and surrounded by people that love him. Johnny feels supremely lucky to have access to the proper care and treatment this country has to offer. However, like millions of Americans ~ and most aspiring artists and musicians ~ he does not currently have health insurance. Needless to say, this is a major hurdle in his fight to beat leukemia.
Johnny’s friends and family report that he is “…staying strong and fighting with brilliant positive energy. His band mates, his family, and his girlfriend are by his side doing everything they can to keep his spirits up, but he still needs every ounce of help he can get.”
The Unite The United Foundation fundraiser auction for Johnny will run from 9am PT on Tuesday, March 27 through 9am PT on Friday, April 6 at: shop.ebay.com/merchant/unitetheunited.
Here are messages of support from Johnny’s friends:
“Johnny has been one of our dearest friends over the past decade. In addition to being the drummer for Greek Fire, Johnny has toured the world with SOTY as our drum tech/stage manager and has been with us through all of the ups and downs. We are doing everything that we can to help get our boy healthy again.” ~ Story of the Year
“Johnny is a great guy and a friend to so many. I wish him a speedy recovery and hope that everyone will do what they can to help us give Johnny a better chance to win this fight.” ~ David Freese, 2011 World Series MVP/St. Louis Cardinals 3rd baseman
“Johnny is one of my favorite people on this earth. I love him like family, because that’s exactly what he is to me. I am so blessed to be a part of something as special as Greek Fire, and to be able to share it with someone as talented and amazing as Johnny is a dream come true for me. I want my brother back in good health more than I can possibly put into words.” ~ Ryan Phillips of Greek Fire and Story of the Year
“Johnny is my best friend of 17 years. He’s never hesitated to give me the shirt off his back. With everyone’s help we have a chance to give a little back to a guy who would and has done anything for us all. Love you buddy!” ~ Moon of Story of the Year and Greek Fire
Items to be auctioned off include the following:
Signed St. Louis Cardinals David Freese home jersey – World Series edition
St. Louis Cardinals World Series home jersey signed by 2011 World Series MVP David Freese.
World Series baseball signed by Tony LaRussa
Official MLB Baseball autographed by manager Tony LaRussa. Signed with the years he won a World Series Championship as a MLB manager for the Oakland Athletics and St. Louis Cardinals.
Rockstar Energy Drink Signal custom snowboard
Custom Glamour Kills skateboard
Rockstar Energy Drink Custom Longboard
Signed Story of the Year Page Avenue CD inserts (15)
15 signed CD inserts from Story of the Year’s debut album Page Avenue
Signed Shinedown Somewhere in the Stratosphere 2 CD/2 DVD set
One pair of tickets/VIP passes to any one show on the 2012 Vans Warped Tour
One pair of tickets/VIP passes to any one show on the 2012 Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival
Kicker iKICK501: The new iKICK501 now certifiably works with iPhone,™ along with iPhone 3G and all 4th-generation or newer iPod media players. Another feature is composite video output, allowing the user to play video from the unit to larger screens. Still portable and still loud, the iK501 still features the outrageous, square-shaped reflex subwoofer on the back of the unit, along with a pair of five-inch woofers and silk-dome tweeters. It’s all juiced by a powerful internal amplifier with digital signal processing for the richest, best-sounding docking system available.
Signed Rockstar Energy Drink UPROAR Festival 2010 Drumhead: Commemorative Evans drumhead signed by Platinum rock bands Disturbed and Avenged Sevenfold, along with Stone Sour, Halestorm, Hellyeah, Airbourne, New Medicine, and Hail The Villain.
Signed Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival drumheads (4): Autographed Mayhem drumheads from: Megadeth, Godsmack, Machinehead, and Kingdom of Sorrow
Signed Megadeth Evans drumheads (8)
Signed Red Fang Mayhem Remo drumhead
Signed Disturbed Mayhem Evans drumhead
Signed Shure 55 SH Series II (Elvis Mic) Kelly Clarkson microphone
Signed Shure Beta 58A Shure Alan Jackson microphone
CD Package: Various CDs from City and Colour, Deer Tick, Hanni El Khatib, James Vincent McMorrow, Library Voices, The Civil Wars, The Jezabels, The Sheepdogs, Tokyo Police Club, and Yukon Blonde.
To donate to Johnny’s fund directly, please go to: www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=YSJ9UCWFHEKQS
For further information and to follow Johnny’s progress, please visit:
www.johnnyvenusGF.tumblr.com
www.twitter.com/JohnnyvenusGF
About Unite the United Foundation: Unite The United Foundation is a public 501 (c) (3) non-profit, fundraising organization founded by the producers of the Vans Warped Tour, Rockstar Energy Energy Mayhem Festival and the Country Throwdown Tour. It’s our mission to encourage fans, artists and industry leaders from the music, touring and action sports worlds to work toward positive change, by supporting local charities and participating in community volunteerism events across the United States. Unite The United Foundation is committed to raising funds to be donated directly to grass roots organizations that are making a difference in our national community.
