A New Bass for Bub

Hi, my name is Jenny and I am fundraising for my friend David “Bub” Ball. I met Bub this year at an outdoor event we are both performing at and we immediately hit it off. Bub is a kind and funny man, and he is one heck of a musician! The event our groups are performing at is in a beautiful, shady setting in a picturesque forest. There are several stages at the venue and Bub’s group and mine are at different ends of the festival. We perform several scheduled shows a day for hundreds of patrons each weekend.

This past weekend, our event was hit with a sudden, violent storm. The sky turned black, the wind blew the trees into a frenzy, lightning cracked the ground around the event and it poured buckets of rain for a good 45 minutes. The patrons ran for cover and all of the performers scrambled to grab sound equipment, merchandise and instruments in a desperate attempt to get everything under cover.

Our group was lucky and we managed to get everything to safety (with the help of some dear friends). Bub was not so lucky. His beautiful upright bass and amp got soaked. If anyone is familiar with an upright bass, they would know that this heavy, laminated, wooden, classical instrument can stand a lot of wear and tear…..but it couldn’t withstand this soaking rain.

Bub did what he could but could only hope and pray that his bass would dry out and be usable to some degree. The contract with his group for the event extends for another 4 weekends at this festival and he doesn’t have a spare instrument. To his dismay, when he checked on his bass the next morning, the seams had split wide open on the bottom and top of the bass’s body. He could still play the bass, but with the resonating chamber of the bass broken and open, the sound just dissipated, turning a once thundering thump of the strings into a dull whisper. He was heart broken.

As I have gotten to know Bub over the last few weeks, I learned that not only is he a nice guy, he is also a truly amazing person. He is a veteran, having served 6 years active duty in the military. He also is a retired firefighter of over 31 years. Bub is a hero. He spent his whole life in the service of others and now he is faced with the grim reality that his singular instrument is ruined beyond repair and he cannot afford to replace it.

That’s where we come in. We have always taken care of each other. We may not be related by blood, but we are united by heart. We come together to support each other in times of need and here is one of our own in desperate need. Please donate to Bub’s cause. The goal is to locate and source a new upright bass and amp for him as quickly as possible. Luckily, there are several music shops in the area and we can start reaching out to inquire who may have a replacement instrument for him. I intend to connect his bank account directly to this GoFundMe so he can access the funds and use it when he has located a suitable replacement. Pitch in what you can and let’s show Bub how much we appreciate him for everything he has done for others his whole life. Share this link with everyone you know. I know we will not let him down.