Music fest gives $10,000 to local charity

By OWEN WALSH
Posted 12/31/19

HONESDALE, PA — A small group of friends gathered in a conference at Remax Wayne on Wednesday, December 18 to remember a friend who they lost on that date five years ago. They met at around …

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Music fest gives $10,000 to local charity

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HONESDALE, PA — A small group of friends gathered in a conference at Remax Wayne on Wednesday, December 18 to remember a friend who they lost on that date five years ago. They met at around 5:30 p.m., almost down to the exact minute that Kate Frisch Carmody passed away battling lung cancer.

“You can really feel her looking down on us in this room right now,” said Steve Mackle.

In addition to remembering their friend, they were also there to see the success of two ideas ignited five years before. Shortly after Kate’s passing, the people closest to her began brainstorming ways to turn tragedy into an impetus for good. One idea turned into the Kate Frisch Carmody Memorial Fund, or Kate’s Wish—which raises money for cancer research—the other idea was the Fall Music Festival, an annual concert featuring local bands the ticket sales of which go toward several local charities.

On Wednesday evening, the organizers of the Fall Music Festival presented the leaders of Kate’s Wish with a check for $10,000.

“Here we are five years later, surrounded by some of my greatest friends,” said Bob Carmody, Kate’s husband. “We’re going to do the best we can with that $10,000.”

In addition to research, Kate’s Wish also puts together chemotherapy care pouches and delivers them to patients at various local hospitals to help them get through treatment more comfortably. The group is also dedicated to honoring Kate’s wish to raise awareness about lung cancer, specifically that it is not a “smoker’s disease.” Kate had already successfully overcome a battle with breast cancer, but doctors then found that she had a very rare form of lung cancer that was also highly resistant to chemotherapy.

“Driving back and forth to the hospital, she talked about it every trip: what she could do, she wanted to educate people,” said Suzie Calkin Frisch. She would often say to her family, “This is ridiculous, people need to know about this.”
Sue Frisch said that Kate would be very pleased to see how far they have taken her message and desire to educate people.

The Fall Music Festival was born of a snowmobiling trip, when Bob and his friend Jamie Rutherford agreed, “There has to be something we can do.” They decided the best tool at their disposal was Steppin’ Eddy, a popular local rock band for which Bob plays drums. The first festival was held in a friend’s backyard; this year it featured five musical groups, with Steppin’ Eddy as headliner, performing at the Dorflinger Wildlife Sanctuary and raised $40,000 in total.

“That’s what we’re about, we’re about people helping each other,” Rutherford said.

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