04/26/2024
Thank you The Storytellers for the opportunity to assist you and Mr. Redden. It is always a pleasure to serve those in our community!
Wow! What a story! 🤠 We transferred almost $29,000 to a Trust Account set up for America's Banjo Boy Billy Redden! Just shy of our $30k goal. We initially started this GoFundMe to better compensate Billy for his tiny but powerful role in Deliverance. We love that "Dueling Banjos" scene! When we met Billy, finally, we realized just how much he needed this help. Now he has it. Thanks are due to many, many people:
• Thank you to the 938 generous donors! What kind, inspirational folks you are! 🙏
• Thank you to top donors John Truskosky ($1,600), Scott Ellington ($1,000), and Chattooga Belle Farm ($500). They were serious! 🙏
• Thank you to the countless numbers of you who shared our campaign across social media. We couldn't have done it without you! 🙏
• Thank you to John Lawless at Bluegrass Today for kindly promoting our campaign. It was a game changer. 🙏
• Thank you to Saving Country Music for doing the same. 🙏
• Thank you to Rodney Ho of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for amplifying our efforts with a great story! 🙏
• Thank you to Darrin Brenner at D. Brenner Art & Design for donating all the amazing graphics for the campaign. 🙏
• Thank you to Enoch Autry, Editor of The Clayton Tribune for acting as an advisor. 🙏
• Thank you to Kip Ramey, Billy's kind-hearted business manager and friend, who acted as liaison between us and Billy. 🙏
• Thank you to kind money manager Ara Joyce of Edward Jones in Clayton, GA for advice and assistance setting up the Trust Fund and doing it gratis. Wow. 🙏
• Thank you to Russell & Russell, PC, Attorneys at Law in Clayton, GA, for doing - and donating - all the vital legal work - gratis - and to their legal assistant Haley Carpenter. 🙏
• Thank you to Terry Mandell - widow of guitarist Steve Mandell who played guitar on the original "Dueling Banjos" soundtrack - for donating and leaving a kind unexpected note of support, thereby directly tying our efforts to the music that has inspired us and so many more. 🙏
Lastly, to our former fiddle player and manager, Michael Garcia, who first said of "Dueling Banjos" and Billy ... "If that kid was paid a dollar for every time I've watched this video, he'd be rich." He planted the seed. 🌹
This has been quite the odyssey. We have seen the worst - and the very best - of human nature during this process. , , , rules the day and we are so to you all.
The campaign is still receiving funds through May. If you'd like to share the campaign and/or donate, and help us reach the magic number of $30k, you may do so here: https://gofund.me/b71015c6
