“So shines a good deed in a weary world.” — Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice (and, of course, Willy Wonka)
I’m proud to call myself an Iowan. We catch grief because of Steve King, are part of what is derisively referred to as “fly-over country”, and are often confused with Idaho by the geographically challenged.
But there is such a thing as “Iowa Nice”. It’s real. (And if you watch this video from 2012, you’ll see that we’re more than just Steve King and corn).
Last weekend, at the annual Cy-Hawk game (the yearly matchup between the Iowa State Cyclones and University of Iowa Hawkeyes), an ISU fan was spotlighted by ESPN holding up a sign asking for beer money (specifically, it said “Busch Light supply depleted Venmo Carson King — 25”).
In short order, Carson King, the signmaker, started getting donations. So many, in fact, he decided he needed to do something more meaningful than fill his beer fridge.
He decided he’d keep enough to buy himself one case of beer, and would donate the rest to the University of Iowa Stead Children’s Hospital. Yep, you’ve got that right — an ISU fan decided to donate to a UI institution.
When he announced his decision, donations, which had been rolling in steadily for beer, began flooding in for the hospital. So much so, that it began to make headlines and drew the attention of both Venmo and Busch, who both publicly announced that each will match anything donated to Carson King, dollar for dollar (Busch also pledged a little something for Mr. King’s beer fridge). Mr. King’s employer, Prairie Meadows (a casino and racetrack in Altoona, Iowa), likewise pledged $10,000.
Ok, you say, but how much money are we really talking, here? I mean, this started as a joking plea for beer money, so it can’t be that much, right?
As of 2:45 Central Time today, if you include the matching pledged by Venmo and Busch, $601,000 has been raised. More than half a million dollars. In one week.
And it’s not done yet. Mr. King has decided to keep donations open through the end of the month, so with the ongoing headlines about this, it’s easy to see how it could top $1 million.
Here are two local news stories, one from earlier this week and one from this afternoon, if you’d like to know more:
ISU Fan Turns Beer Money Sign into Viral Fundraiser for Children’s Hospital
Viral Cy-Hawk Sign Passes $600K Mark in Fundraising for Univ. of Iowa Children’s Hospital
Saturday, Sep 21, 2019 · 1:53:09 AM +00:00
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Witgren
Update: I wanted to make note of a recent Hawkeye tradition — the Hawkeye Wave. Stead Children’s Hospital facility overlooks Kinnick stadium, home of the Iowa Hawkeyes. It has become a tradition (since the new Stead facility was completed in 2017) during home games for fans to turn at the end of the 1st quarter and wave to patients in the hospital watching games from their rooms or from the “press box” on the top floor:
The top floor of the hospital, which was completed prior to the 2017 season, features a "Press Box" where patients and families can come together on home game Saturday's to watch the Hawkeyes play. From the windows of the press box, there's a near-perfect view of Kinnick Stadium for patients to cheer on their beloved Hawkeyes. Children often tape signs and posters to the windows in their rooms in support of the team and now, fans support them back with the Iowa wave.