Fundraiser aids families of crash victims
For the families and friends of Josh Boettner, Levi Deal, and Ronnie Parisi, the shock of their fatal crash on Saturday, June 8 still hasn’t quite sunk in. The three were killed that day in Crawford County when Parisi’s vehicle crashed into a tree.
“We're working every day to help close this wound,” said Joseph Parisi, Ronnie’s father. “It's so big. It's such a big void. It’s going to take forever.”
On Sunday, June 30, friends and family came together to help ease some of the loss with a fundraiser at the Butler Moose Lodge on West Jefferson Street.
In addition to lunch — which cost $10 each for adults and $5 each for children 12 and younger — the event raised money through 50/50 raffles and through a basket raffle.
Playing a key part in organizing the fundraiser event was Zach Scherer, a friend of both the Parisi and Deal families.
“I knew Levi and Ronnie very well,” Scherer said. “(We were) good friends for probably four or five years.”
Scherer said he hoped the event would raise at least $50,000 to divide evenly between the three families.
In addition to Saturday’s fundraiser, the East Butler Volunteer Fire Company is holding a fundraising cornhole tournament called Bags For Our Boys on July 20 at the East Butler Fire Hall. As with Saturday’s Moose Lodge event, proceeds from the cornhole tournament will be split evenly between the three families to help pay for funeral expenses.
“The support of the community and our friends and family has been amazing,” said Ursula Parisi, Ronnie’s stepmother. “They have been there for us through everything. Every tear, every hard time that we've gone through since then. The support has been absolutely amazing.”
“The support from the community and everybody gives me great joy,” said Rebecca Deal, Levi’s mother. “It brings me great joy that so many have come together to support the families and celebrate these three young men's lives that were taken too early.”
