Art Love Collective, The Burger Stand and Taco Zone are coming together to raise funds so friends can attend the ceremony for Cole Brings Plenty, 27, who was found dead last week after being missing for several days.
“Indigenous Open Mic: Letters to Cole” will allow Brings Plenty’s classmates from Haskell Indian Nations University and other friends to share stories, songs and poems “inspired by and in honor of Coco,” according to a social media post from Art Love Collective.
Brings Plenty, Mnicouju Lakota, was a Haskell Indian Nations University student studying media. He was also an actor known for his role in the TV show “1923,” a spinoff of “Yellowstone.”
Brings Plenty worked at The Burger Stand at the Casbah. The restaurant was closed over the weekend following the news that Brings Plenty’s body had been found in Johnson County. Investigators announced Wednesday that they did not suspect foul play in his death. (Read more of the backstory in the links below.)
Brings Plenty’s ceremony will be held in South Dakota. Taco Zone will sell tacos at the event, and 100% of proceeds will go to help Brings Plenty’s peers with the costs to get there.
“We decided to hold an open mic night for relatives and community members to share what’s been on their minds and in their hearts this past week,” Moniquè Mercurio, Ohlone Costanoan Esselen Nation, director of operations for Art Love Collective, wrote in a Facebook post. “My hope is this brings some sense of peace and support to all who attend.”
The event is set for 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, April 12 at Art Love Collective, 646 Vermont St.
“This event is open to the public! Please come show support and solidarity to our Indigenous community as we are all hurting and could use some love,” Mercurio wrote.
Mercurio is also asking local artists to donate art for a silent auction to help fund student travel. Art donations can be brought to Art Love anytime before the event Friday.
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Lawrence open mic fundraiser to help Haskell students, peers travel to classmate’s ceremony
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