Music

Guns N' Roses Rocker Kicks Off Haiti Benefit Tour

HUDSON, USA (defend.ht) - Guns N' Roses bassist Tommy Stinson is kicking off a brief tour to raise money for a trade school for orphans he has been running since 1994 in Port-au-Prince called Timkatek.

Tommy Stinson has been around the world countless times, tearing the roof off clubs and concert halls for most of his life – most famously as an original member of the Replacements and, for the past 14 years, as the bass guitarist for Guns N’ Roses.

Stinson is also fresh off the release of his latest solo album, and he’s kicking off a brief tour at Club Helsinki in Hudson next week as a benefit concert for children in Haiti.

Stinson, who grew up in Minneapolis before finding his way to Hudson later in life, joked that he has been playing music for so long that “It’s pretty much all I’ve known and all I’ve got, besides my family and friends.” That’s an oversimplification, of course. He has also got Timkatec, a trade school in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

Timkatec was founded in 1994 with the goal of teaching young orphaned and destitute children a trade so that they have a chance to go out and make a difference in their communities. Like much of Haiti, Timkatec was devastated by the massive earthquake that hit in January 2010.

Like many people around the world, Stinson was moved to do something to help in the wake of the earthquake. He had previously donated money to the Red Cross after Hurricane Katrina, but was disappointed by stories of mismanagement of monies. This time around, Stinson said, he wanted to make a more profound difference.

“I had to try to find a way to help both financially and emotionally to do something of real value,” Stinson said. “I got hold of a friend of mine who knew a guy who knew a guy who ran a school in Haiti. Through making those contacts, I went down to Haiti two summers ago and went to the school and met Father Simon, saw a class graduate and hung out and decided that it was something I was into and got involved.”

Stinson raised over $40,000 through an online auction, with the proceeds going toward building a third floor on one of the school’s buildings and helping to house an additional 50 students. But now those same kids and others are nearing graduation, and Stinson is hoping to raise between $15,000 and $20,000 for toolkits.

Read full article.