Post-benefit relief

SHERYL AND I got to hang out with the Bursics and friends Sunday. The night before, Bill and Kathleen hosted a huge party at the Oakley-Lindsay Center to raise money for their late daughter's foundation. Click here for more info.

KC, Mel and Kathleen
Photo by Mike Sorenson

Sarah Bursic passed away a few years ago. Dealing with the death of a child is beyond comprehension. For some, it's a very private thing. The Bursics decided to establish a foundation in their daughter's memory, and it's not an easy thing to undertake.

Bill and Kathleen don't want to be in the limelight. They remind me a lot of Chuck and June Otte, who put on the Sammy Fund event for many years with an awesome group of volunteers. Chuck and June would rather dig a hole and hide than deal with the many responsibilities and public demands of having a huge fundraiser. Yet they did it for years and years with dignity and class.

So yesterday at the Bursic home, the fabulous and legendary "Patio 910," Cori Lyssy and I performed as part of a Humane Society fundraiser deal struck with Craig Freeman. We had a blast. The thing I noticed the most as both Bill and Kathleen bustled around making food, serving beverages and chatting with people was a sense of relief. There is an incredible amount of work that goes into doing big events, and the Bursics will tell you their friends deserve extra credit.

Maybe so, but I want them to know I respect them and appreciate them more and more. The air was coming out of the balloon on a Sunday afternoon, and you could just see it escaping.

It was an honor to be a part of it.