Alex Boyé to perform at concert to benefit non-profit wheelchair organization
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IDAHO FALLS — Popular singer Alex Boyé is joining forces with two local men to help provide wheelchairs to those in need.
Blayne Andersen and Dave Pinegar, the co-owners of Sunnyside Auto, are bringing Boyé to eastern Idaho Friday, June 7 for a concert to benefit the organization Chair the Hope.
Chair the Hope delivers wheelchairs to people who need assistance around the world. Nathan and Heather Ogden of Boise co-founded the non-profit after Nathan shattered his neck snow skiing in 2001. The accident left him a quadriplegic but he remains very active and continues to ski, snorkel, skydive and more.
“A few months ago, my husband and Dave were at an event in St. George where they got to meet Alex and Nathan Ogden,” Rachel Andersen, Blayne’s wife, tells EastIdahoNews.com. “They thought the Ogdens were so awesome and they were so inspired by Nathan. He and his wife do so much to give back and we wanted to try and help.”
In March 2018, Chair The Hope personally delivered 400 wheelchairs in Mexico after devastating earthquakes. In March 2019, the organization delivered 100 wheelchairs in Costa Rica. Other scheduled wheelchair distributions include Peru, Ghana, Idaho, Utah and Nevada.
Shipping a large container of 285-300 wheelchairs to another country costs around $43,000, according to Andersen.
“Obviously we’d love to fund an entire crate of wheelchairs but our goal is to pay for as many as we can,” Andersen says.
The benefit concert will be held at Thunder Ridge High School. The Thunder Ridge and Bonneville High School choirs will also perform and the school Hope Squads will receive some of the proceeds.
“My desire for this event is to help Chair the Hope raise a good amount of money for their charity and also to help empower the Hope Squads in the surrounding schools to keep up the great work they are doing in fighting to break the stigma of mental illness and suicide,” Boyé says.
Tickets range from $12 to $28 and are available by clicking here.
A separate dinner will also be held with Boyé and Ogden on Thursday, June 6. Businesses and individuals are invited to purchase tables at the private concert. If you are interested, email Rachel Andersen at andersen718@gmail.com.