Sawmill benefit raises over $50,000 and counting

Murray River, PEI - They still have some career choices to make but if little Ellen and Austin ever become chief sawyers at Moores Sawmill some day, theyll have a special tribute hanging on the wall.

An old saw blade salvaged from the ashes of the fire that destroyed the (Murray River, Prince Edward Island) community sawmill over three weeks ago now bears the signatures of hundreds of supporters and friends.

But those names are a mere handful of the more than 1,500 people who either attended or dropped by a Monday (Aug. 25) night barbecue and benefit concert that has so far netted $53,754and they are still counting.

Its a great community to live in, said Gerald Moore, who with brother Joel, worked at the mill owned by parents Jerry and Elsie.

Its hard to believe.

The sawmill was torched the night of Aug. 6 and RCMP have laid charges of obstruction and arson individually against two men from the southeastern part of the province.

The destruction stirred immense emotion in the region and resulted in a huge effort to host a benefit barbecue, silent auction and concert. That will be followed by a massive volunteer effort to rebuild the sawmill sometime this fall.

We put the date on the saw blade so Jerry could hang it up in the new mill, said Jaime Bell, one of the organizers of the rebuild effort. And who knows, 50 years from now these kids might be in charge.

And that sums up just how important the sawmill is here to community life. There are hundreds of homes, decks, barns and sheds built with locally milled wood from Moores operation, not to mention the slabs used by countless residents for cook stoves and winter heating.

I went to Brehauts (Murray Harbour) for breakfast on Tuesday and two people handed me donations because they couldnt make the concert the night before, said Bell.Im getting people mailing donations in and calling on where to send some money. Its just fantastic.

Organizers were overwhelmed with donations from businesses throughout the eastern end of the province as well as the crowds that turned up. Well over 500 packed the Northumberland Arena, but Bell said tickets were handed out to everyone who came through the doors and over 1,500 were distributed. Jerry and Elsie Moore were at the door to personally thank everyone for the support.

Lots of people just came and gave and had to leave, said Bell, a member of the Celtic Ladies.

When it came time for us to play I just couldnt believe how packed it was.

Austins mom and dad, Joel and Erin, and Ellens mom and dad, Gerald and Melissa, said the family is now searching for replacement equipment with the intent to build a similar-sized operation sometime this fall.