I’m Between Jobs and I Gave Jonathan Dick $10 – You Should Too
For a link to the fundraiser mentioned in this article stab here.
Do you remember when I told you to read Steel For Brains? You may have forgotten, but I remember. It’s a kick ass heavy metal site. Founder Jonathan Dick has been dealing with a very unfortunate family situation over the last few weeks. I follow Jonathan on various social media sites, including Facebook, as I have been reading his blog regularly since its inception over two years ago. Last weekend, prolific metal scribe Kim Kelly started a Go Fund Me account for Jonathan Dick. Here it is, in her words:
Most people know Jonathan Dick as a music writer, author, and teacher—as a talented, big-hearted person with a tireless work ethic, a way with words, and a soft spot for Rush. He goes above and beyond to support the music he loves, sharing their stories everywhere from Stereogum, Noisey, NPR, and Pitchfork to his own much-loved site, Steel for Brains. He’s a stand-up guy, a gentle soul, and a lovable nerd, but to three special people in this world, he is more than that—he’s their Daddy. Jonathan’s children are his world, his end-all and be-all, and he is a joyously loving, accepting, goofy, and devoted father to Solomon, Elijah, and his youngest, his little warrior princess, Hannah.
Recently Hannah has been dealing with severe medical problems, leading to an extended hospital stay and uncertain future. She has been disgnosed with ciliary dyskinesia, an incurable genetic lung disorder that means that she will have to undergo daily breathing treatments for the rest of her life.
It’s also left Jonathan with a mountain of hospital bills. His insurance won’t cover all of it, and an Alabama teacher’s salary ain’t what it used to be. Hannah has further tests to undergo, as well, so the family still has a long road ahead.
With that in mind, I decided to set up this fundraiser for him and his children because, honestly, they deserve it. Hannah deserves to live a long, happy, healthy life, and to take that trip to Disney World that Jonathan’s been saving up for. If you’ve ever read and enjoyed one of Jonathan’s articles, bantered with him on Twitter, shared a drink with him in real life, or just want to help this beautiful little girl smile wider, please consider donating a few dollars to this effort. Not every little girl is lucky enough to have a father like Jonathan, and those of us who can count him as a friend are awfully lucky, too.
Many thanks,
Kim Kelly
I don’t know Jonathan Dick personally, but in my limited interactions with him (emailing him about covering his site for our site) I found him to be courteous and grateful. He said he would honored that I would cover his list for the Toilet Ov Hell. I already mentioned being a fan of Steel For Brains – in fact, Jonathan is one of a handful of people who have energized my ham-fisted attempts at blogging. Jonathan is a tremendous writer, and has written about himself personally in a way that is inspiring.
I was laid off last month from a company which I was employed at for seven years. Needless to say, money has been a small concern since my last day of work. Nonetheless, I donated $10 to this campaign. Look, I can barely leave the house without spending $10. If it is within your means, I would encourage you to do the same. At the time of this writing (Sunday, 4/26/15, 1:49 pm CST) the fundraiser for Jonathan and Hannah has already raised $10,041 towards its goal of $20,000 or possibly $30,000. Pallbearer, Lars Gotrich (NPR), and Aaron Lariviere (Stereogum) are among the contributors. If all the readers of the Toilet Ov Hell donated $10 a piece, the fundraiser would likely be $5,000 or $7,000 closer to its goal. This is a time for fans of heavy metal and heavy metal journalism to come together.
Lastly, since this is still a site about music, I recently listened to the new Godspeed You! Black Emperor album Asunder, Sweet and Other Distress because Jonathan Dick covered it for Spin Magazine. It’s just one more motivating thing to add to the list when someone so invested in heavy music starts his own site and ends up writing for an outlet like Spin.
For a link to the fundraiser mentioned in this article stab here.
Thanks to the Toilet Ov Hell editors (as always) for letting me run with this.
P.S. Asunder, Sweet and Other Distress is a very solid record.
P.P.S. I have an interview Thursday for an on-call position. Wish me luck.
