Special to the Standard-Speaker Rick Hart, a former U.S. Marine who read about Drums' Frank Tate, a Marine who came in contact with Agent Orange during the Vietnam War, held a fundraiser at his Monroe, Ohio, bar where he raised $1,500 for Tate, who he's never met.
By Jill Whalen (Staff Writer)
Published: August 26, 2010
About 150 people from the Monroe, Ohio area showed up for a fundraiser that raised more than $1,500 for an area man they don't know.
The Aug. 21 fundraiser was organized by Rick Hart, of Monroe, who, like attendees, also doesn't know Drums resident Frank Tate. But when Hart found an online Standard-Speaker story about Tate, 59, and the liver disease he's battling, he knew he had to help.
Word that some doctors believe Tate's cirrhosis was caused by his exposure to Agent Orange hit home for Hart. Just like Tate, Hart was a Marine who served during the Vietnam War around the time the chemical defoliant was used.
Less than 10 days after Hart contacted Tate, the fundraiser was held.
"When I spoke to Frank, I told him we wouldn't leave him out in the bush. I said this to Frank because in the Marine Corps it was drilled into our heads we never leave our dead and wounded. Right now Frank is that wounded Marine," Hart said.
Tate, who received the Bronze Star Medal for saving two Marines' lives, needs a liver transplant. Doctors, however, aren't willing to perform one since his health is progressively failing.
The 12-hour fundraiser was held in Hart's basement, a space he converted into an NCO Club complete with jukeboxes, pinball machines and other games. Food and drinks were served and donations were accepted.
To get the word out, Hart canvassed his neighborhood, hand delivering invitations to folks he saw outside their homes. He invited friends from the local VFW and military support groups. He invited people he didn't know.
He visited Monroe area businesses, too, asking for donations for a raffle.
He also pitched the fundraiser during an interview on WLW talk radio in Cincinnati, and gave an interview to a reporter with the Enquirer newspaper in Cincinnati.
"I told the radio station you have to be nuts or a Marine to do this in your own home," Hart laughed.
A number of Vietnam veterans attended the event. Also on hand was Keith Maupin, of Batavia, Ohio. Maupin is the father of the late Army Pfc. Keith Matthew "Matt" Maupin, who was captured by Iraqi insurgents during the Iraq War in 2004.
While Hart is happy with the funds he helped raise for Tate, he said the main goal of the fundraiser was to get word out in hopes that someone can help - especially since the U.S. government doesn't recognize Agent Orange as a cause for cirrhosis, and Tate has been told nothing more can be done to improve his condition.
"Maybe someone or some hospital with hands-on authority will step up and help Frank," he said. "That's what it's all about."
Tate said it was "nice" to know people were supporting him through the fundraiser.
His wife, Carol Tate, was also touched by the generous gesture.
"It's so nice to know that there are wonderful people out there to help you," she said. "These are people we don't even know. You really don't know how wonderful some people can be until something like this happens."
The Tates invited the Hart and his wife, Linda Lou, to their home.
"I'd like to deliver (the donations) in person and meet Frank and Carol," Hart said, but explained he'd likely send the donations because more than 800 miles separates Monroe from Drums.
whalen@standardspeaker.com
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