“The beauty of community is that in the worst of times you see the best of people,” said Vince Gill at the top of WSMV’s Flood Relief With Vince Gill & Friends telethon last night (5/6). And community in Nashville came out full force to support the effort, which raised $1.7 million to benefit Second Harvest Food Bank, The Salvation Army and the Red Cross.

Organized by Gill, the event replaced usual NBC Thursday night programming not only in Nashville but also other markets like Memphis and Knoxville. WSMV anchors and reporters Dan Thomas, Demetria Kalodimos, Lisa Spencer and others led the proceedings. Stars who stopped by work the phones and provide musical entertainment included Alison Krauss, Dan Tyminski, Keith Urban, Amy Grant, Darius Rucker, Lorrie Morgan, Lonestar, Steve Wariner, Chuck Wicks, Mat Kearny, Mark Volman, Bo Bice, Marty Roe, Dean Sams, Naomi Judd, Steven Curtis Chapman, Steve Wariner, Julie Roberts and more. Donations came from such far-flung locales as California, Key West, and Canada.

Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen made an appearance to applaud the hugely successful local volunteer efforts as well as the swift federal response. But he reminded all not to forget the recovery process. “This is going to take a long time to come back,” said the Governor. “With these disasters, for a couple weeks it has the attention of people but for all the people who have been hurt there are months and in some cases years getting back to normal.” Gill started the donations off by pledging $100,000 from himself and Amy Grant. Other stars like Naomi Judd have even opened their homes to neighbors in need. Taylor Swift phoned in from Hendersonville to send her best wishes, and donated $500,000 to be spread across the three organizations. Nissan of America, with its big local presence in Franklin, was the largest corporate donor at $300,000.

Over on CNN, Anderson Cooper was in town with his AC360 crew and marveled at the community already helping Nashville back to its feet. He lamented the lack of national news coverage at the week’s start, admitting, “We should have been here. But I feel privileged to be here and witness how this city is rising.”

Brad Paisley joined Cooper for a conversation about losses dealt to the music community, noting that he—like many others—lost gear when SoundCheck flooded. Paisley also revealed that he had a phone call from President Obama reminding him that FEMA would be there, and to encourage those in need to get in touch. “I personally want to see the media doing exactly what youre doing, which is spreading the word,” said Paisley.

Earlier in the day, Cooper taped an interview with Tim McGraw and Faith Hill as they surveyed citywide damage. “I think you can be lulled into a sense of, ‘It’s really not that bad,’” said McGraw, “because you can be in one area and everything’s fine. All the stores are open, people are going about their business, kids are in school. But then you can go a couple streets over and there’s total devastation and it’s like that all over the city and communities outside the city.”

Cooper’s show was broadcast live from a neighborhood in Bellevue just starting to dig out from the mess. “Homes are still standing, but inside they’re completely destroyed,” he noted. “But the story here is one of a city rising, not a city on its knees. I’ve never seen an effort by so many volunteers so quickly in the wake of a disaster. It’s really a testament to the strength of the city and the strength of its people. They call it The Volunteer State, and they have shown the world why they deserve that name.” “See videos from Cooper’s show at http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/blog/”

On WSMV, Nashville Mayor Karl Dean summed up the city’s ongoing struggle and the vibrant spirit with which it will be overcome. “We have a lot of work to do to clean the city up and move forward but we’ll get it done,” said Dean. “I’ve seen volunteers everywhere. I’ve seen people helping strangers, and the spirit of this city is so great that I feel really optimisitic about our future. The Hall of Fame is opening tomorrow, the CMA Music Fest is going to happen in June, the honky tonks are open. This city will recover and it will recover strong. This city is open. People who are scheduled to visit this city need to come. People who haven’t scheduled it yet, they need to make reservations and show up.”

To which MusicRow says amen, and bring it on.

Soles4Souls Inc., the shoe charity, is working overtime to provide free shoes, water and other items to people in its hometown of Nashville. Soles4Souls unveiled a three-stage relief plan, beginning with a massive distribution of 85,000 new pairs of shoes at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds.

On Monday, May 10, from 3:00 PM-7:00 PM, staff and volunteers from Soles4Souls will be at the Fairgrounds providing free shoes to anyone in need.  On Tuesday, May 12, the Fairgrounds will be open from 10 AM-2 PM. On both days, the distribution will be held under the Show Arena Pavilion and will feature men’s, women’s and children’s shoes.

“This is shaping up to be the worst natural disaster in Nashville’s history, and we are committing all available resources and manpower to help our friends and neighbors get back on their feet,” said Wayne Elsey, Founder and CEO of Soles4Souls. “We need volunteers to join us at the State Fairgrounds and provide free shoes to people coming for help. We are thankful for the Tennessee State Fairgrounds for allowing us to use their facilities to help Tennesseans in need.”

Elsey said the second stage of the relief project would take place at the charity’s World Headquarters, at 319 Martingale Drive, Old Hickory TN, 37138 (behind the McDonald’s on Old Hickory Boulevard in Old Hickory).  Soles4Souls will be handing out bottled water, Gatorade, and food to residents in need. The “drive-thru” distribution will be held on Friday, May 14 and Saturday, May 15.

The third stage of the relief plan will come as Elsey and his team members launch a sustained giving campaign, which will include children’s products, for Middle Tennessee throughout the rest of the year.

“Because of our partnerships with a variety of non-profit agencies around the country, we’ll be able to provide a wide range of ongoing support for our neighbors in need,” Elsey said.

To learn more about Soles4Souls, or to volunteer with the charity, visit www.giveshoes.org or call 615-391-5723.

Nashville Scene, our sister publication offers an introspective collection of articles with perspective on  life changing events this week in Nashville’s history. Be sure to pick up the issue, and also click on the link at the bottom of this page to see a 45-slide Flood retrospective. —DMR

• • • • •

This is not the city we lived in five days ago.

We woke last Saturday morning — May 1, 2010, the ominously designated May Day — to a sky the color of a livid bruise and rain that steadily increased from strong to torrential. It didn’t let up. By late afternoon, a children’s birthday party at the Hillwood Strike & Spare near Bellevue let out to a sky split by lightning and rivulets swelling into whitewater.

In Antioch, motorists on I-24 realized too late that an impossibility had overtaken them — symbolized by the sight of an uprooted portable building lumbering into view like a ghost ship. In Germantown, in Bordeaux, in Antioch, where the roiling Mill Creek brought traffic to a standstill, the waters churned. In Franklin, homeowners along the Harpeth watched the river rise with terrifying speed. “It was like something alive,” one said.

By Sunday afternoon, two realizations set in, equally chilling. The disaster befalling Tennessee was worse than anyone could possibly have imagined — and yet we had no idea how bad it would get.

Those of us with power watched as the unthinkable happened again and again on live TV. Or we followed updates chasing the lightning on a buzzing web of electronic media — a support network emerging from isolated pinpricks. Those without watched helplessly as their homes and belongings washed away, their cars, their keepsakes, their family photos. Entire communities were devastated. Nashville, for all practical purposes, became an island.

Slideshow: Pictures capturing the 2010 Flood in Nashville.

In response to the devastating floods that have plagued the City of Nashville and Middle Tennessee, CMA has announced that 50 percent of the net proceeds of 2010 CMA Music Festival will be donated to the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee for flood relief. This is in addition to CMA’s already established annual donation of 50 percent of the net proceeds to Metro Nashville Public Schools for music education through the Keep the Music Playing program. In total, 100 percent of the net proceeds of the event will be given to benefit Nashville’s public school students and Middle Tennessee families in need.

CMA Music Festival is Nashville’s signature music event, drawing 56,000 people from the region as well as every state in the nation and visitors from 26 countries around the globe, while bringing in more than $22 million in direct visitor spending to the local economy.

“This year with all the downtown businesses as well as our tourism industry suffering huge losses due to flood damage, it is vitally important to the Nashville business community that CMA Music Festival continues as planned,” said Steve Moore, CMA Chairman of the Board. “CMA is proud to step up and help our area by donating half of the CMA Music Festival’s net proceeds to the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee to help its flood relief efforts while we continue our important commitment to children and music education.”

“CMA has always been a great supporter of Music City through the Association’s Keep the Music Playing initiative,” said Nashville Mayor Karl Dean. “This added contribution to aid in flood recovery efforts will be incredibly helpful and demonstrates the great partnership that exists between the City of Nashville, CMA Music Festival, and the country music industry.”
“Millions of lives have been affected by this disaster. While some will recover quickly, others will take months or years to rebuild, and The Community Foundation’s disaster funds will continue to strategically address needs as they emerge and evolve,” said Ellen Lehman, President of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee. “It has been incredible to see this community’s outpouring of generosity, and we are thrilled, but not surprised, to see CMA join in leading the efforts to help this city rebuild.”

CMT Offices Remain Closed
CMT’s offices in Downtown Nashville remain closed today (5/6) due to flood-related power outages and other damage. CMT spokesperson Lisa Chater tells MusicRow that, although the offices are closed and several of CMT’s TV Trucks were affected, employees are working remotely. CMT promises that television viewers will see no change, with the exception of the frequent flood-related PSAs the network is airing for the Red Cross.

• • •

CMA Escapes Flood Damage
Although some buildings in the area were flooded, Country Music Association’s Music Row offices sustained little or no damage, according to Dan Bowen, CMA’s Vice President of Strategic Marketing & Communications. “I was a bit nervous when I arrived Monday morning that the parking garage might be flooded,” Bowen said. “But we were very lucky. CMA was closed on Monday but reopened on Tuesday. The only damage to the building was a small roof leak in the ceiling in the men’s room. Overall we were very blessed.”

• • •

Country Music Hall of Fame To Re-Open This Weekend
The Country Music Hall of Fame officials have announced that the museum is will re-open to the public this weekend. Due to flooding in Downtown Nashville and the subsequent loss of power, the museum has been closed since Monday (4/3). “We expect power to be restored by Saturday, May 8, at the latest,” said Museum Director Kyle Young. “As soon as the lights come back on, our staff stands ready to welcome visitors back to the Museum.”

• • •

Grammy Block Party is a Go

NARAS has announced that the Grammy Block Party is still on for this Tuesday (5/11) and will officially kick off fundraising efforts for MusiCares® Nashville Flood Relief. Emergency assistance already has begun, and 100% of every dollar raised will be immediately distributed to help those in our music community that are victims of the flood. Please visit the MusiCares table at the Block Party or www.musicares.com to donate to MusiCares Nashville Flood Relief. This year’s Block Party will feature musical performances by Darius Rucker, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, Steel Magnolia, Plumb and Daily & Vincent. The event will be held at Owen Bradley Park with gates opening at 4:30.

• • •

Reba McEntire has donated $100k to the Nashville Area Red Cross Chapter and is asking everyone to text REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation to help those affected by the flooding. Many other Nashville artists have asked fans to text and donate as well….
• • •

Lady Antebellum’s current webisode is dedicated to “everyone affected by the recent flooding in Nashville and mid-Tennessee.

Fresh Aire Solutions Offers Free Flood Consultation

Fire and water disaster restoration service FreshAire Solutions is offering free consultation services to businesses and victims of the recent flooding disaster in Nashville. Consultation service will include objective analysis of damage, repair estimates and restoration options, including musical instruments, which can often be salvaged rather than discarded. Fresh Aire owner Ed Ciofani will be in Nashville the week of May 10. Contact him at 239.633.2080 or email him at eciofani@freshairesolutions.net to set an appointment. There is no obligation to hire FreshAire Solutions for any services. Ciofani is donating his time and expertise for those in need. “Country music has always been a big part of my life and my family’s life, too,” says Ciofani. “It’s nice to be able to give back to the Nashville community without any expectations in return. In a crisis like this, my only motivation is to make sure people are educated about their options and to make sure they aren’t being taken advantage of, because I’ve seen it happen so many times before.”

• • •

Britain’s Smart Choice Music Offers International Help
Nashville-based artist manager John Lomax III passed along the following message that Britain’s mail-order music retailer Smart Choice Music sent out to its customers: “Everyone will by now be aware of the devastating floods that have hit Nashville and the surrounding areas. As country music fans with many friends and extended family in Music City our thoughts are with everyone affected. Living several thousand miles away we are left feeling helpless in being not able to offer any practical help. So, the best we can do at this point is try to raise awareness and help with fundraising. We have set up some charity auctions on eBay of a few rare items, and all of the proceeds of these sales will go to the relief fund. Please take a look at our auctions here, and give generously to help the community that is suffering so badly. Alternatively, you can donate to the flood relief directly by visiting the Community Foundation website here.