Camping World CEO Marcus Lemonis aids Nashville businesses hurt by bombing: with $500G donation and new nonprofit fund
The Nashville 30 Day Fund looks to keep #NashvilleStrong
Millionaire entrepreneur and Camping World CEO Marcus Lemonis has launched a nonprofit and donated $500,000 of his own money to benefit businesses damaged or destroyed by the Christmas Day bombing in Nashville.
Lemonis plans to work with local businesses impacted by the blast, which damaged dozens of properties near Second Avenue North in downtown Nashville with a new nonprofit, the Nashville 30 Day Fund.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CWH | CAMPING WORLD HOLDINGS | 24.71 | -0.43 | -1.71% |
“I would like to get a list of every local business that got wiped out from the explosion in Nashville. We will work together to provide solutions as a group... and find the funds necessary to rebuild and reopen #NashvilleStrong please help me put this together,” he wrote Saturday in the first of a series of tweets about the explosion.
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Hours later, Lemonis announced that he was taking steps to help local businesses by creating a team dedicated to “providing cash/funding, insurance and real estate guidance,” among other things, he wrote on Twitter. He later added that he would be putting his own money toward clean-up and reparation efforts.
Lemonis launched the Nashville 30 Day Fund on Monday, with the business exec and television personality injecting $500,000 to get the nonprofit off the ground. The fund will provide qualifying people and businesses forgivable loans of up to $100,000.
"The Nashville 30 Day Fund is designed to be quick, easy, and free of red tape, as small business owners and individuals work to recover from the effects of the Christmas Day bombing in Nashville," the fund's website states. "All we ask in return: if you can, pay it forward.
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He said Sunday that he and a team would be visiting the Music City on Wednesday “to start the process with business owners affected.”
“To those affected, you are not alone,” he tweeted at the time.
Three people were injured and the person believed to have been behind the attack, Anthony Quinn Warner, was killed.
Police said Warner was inside an RV parked on Second Avenue North near an AT&T building, when it began blaring an audio recording urging people nearby to evacuate and warning them that a bomb would detonate in minutes. The ominous recording then switched to Petula Clark’s "Downtown" before the explosion shortly thereafter.
Investigators have not yet announced an official motive for the attack.
On Wednesday, Lemonis shared photos and videos from Nashville and encouraged local business owners to meet with him and his team so they could begin the recovery process.
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“We’re just trying to provide something and if you can help us support this effort we’d appreciate it,” he said in a video posted Wednesday afternoon. “Those funds will go directly to those affected.”
Anyone interested in donating through Nashville 30 Day Fund can do so by visiting nashville30dayfund.com.