Our red dirt friends

It was the call I've been dreading since we moved northwest of town nine years ago.

"I've fallen off the roof," I heard faintly through the phone in my office downtown. 

"Not the big roof?" I asked, thinking of the steep, sloping roof on the second floor of the house. 

"No, the one by the bedroom," came the pained reply.

At that point, I knew that my husband, Kurt Nielsen, would most likely survive the 14-foot drop. Kurt, AKA Frenchy, is a landscaper and "mister mom" (in his own words) and has been part of Oklahoma’s music scene since the late 1970s. The evening before his April 9 accident, he played The Tulsa Voice Courtyard Concert Series with Chris Lee Becker. 

From the emergency room, Kurt texted area musician Kevin Smith, who posted about the accident on Facebook. 

The texts and calls started rolling in. John Cooper and Brad Piccolo of the Red Dirt Rangers encouraged us to apply for the Red Dirt Relief Fund to help with out-of-pocket costs insurance wouldn’t cover. The fund is designed to help Oklahoma musicians facing emergencies. 

Later that month, Chris Reed organized a picking circle and benefit at Lucky’s on the Green. About 30 people came to jam and pass the hat, and we also received the Red Dirt Relief Fund gift that day. 

Kurt has months of physical therapy ahead before he’s back to his usual chops. The recovery has been challenging, but with the support of friends, I know we'll make it. We've seen an incredible outpouring of concern and love from our local music community, and we’d especially like to thank Kevin, Chris, Brian Horton, my brother Joe Baxter, Randy Bell, Kyle Dismukes, Adam Miller, Bob Wiles, Jean Wiles and Chris Lee Becker. Thanks also to Coop, Brad, Katie Dale and the Red Dirt Relief Fund Board. We hope to pay it forward some day. 

To learn more about the Red Dirt Relief Fund, visit reddirtrelieffund.org.