Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Singer Sheryl Crow donates her Mercedes to help Joplin

The May 22 tornado took 159 lives and destroyed about 30 percent of Joplin, a city of about 50,000 residents. It was the deadliest tornado in the United States in more than 60 years.
Cash is not all that is coming from generous people to Joplin, Missouri, which is struggling to recover a crippling May 22 tornado.

Missouri native Sheryl Crow a Singer announced Monday that she is giving up her vintage 1959 Mercedes convertible to help rebuild ten schools destroyed or damaged by the twister.

Crow said,"After the tornado in Joplin I was moved to help rebuild a city so close to where I grew up in Missouri".  Crow is from Kennett in southeast Missouri and was a teacher before becoming an entertainer.

Crow will have the Mercedes-Benz 190 SL Roadster put on the auction block in Pebble Beach, California, on Aug. 22. Crow said, My hope is that the auction of my 1959 Mercedes-Benz 190 SL Roadster will bring in funds to help rebuild the schools in the area.”

Proceeds from the car's sale will go to the Community Foundation of the Ozarks, which has raised about $2.5 million for 21 different needs in Joplin, including schools and supplies. Crow met with foundation representatives a week ago, said Louise Knauer, foundation vice president.

  Knauer said, She decided to raise awareness of Joplin's needs by putting it up for auction. She hopes to get a plug in for the car in an appearance on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno."

Knauer said, Crow's contribution is among hundreds the foundation has received from sources famous to obscure. Last month, it received $500,000 from the charitable foundation of actor Brad Pitt and his partner Angelina Jolie. Pitt spent much of his youth in Joplin.

Knauer said, Donations from Missourians Crow and Pitt are heartwarming. The foundation has received donations from people in nearly every state as well as several foreign countries.

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