A fundraising celebration has been announced for Marshalltown and
the Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum. The event will feature events, food, adult drinks, activities for
all ages and an 8 p.m. concert by Iowa native country music star Jason Brown set to be held
July 6 on State Street in front of the Coliseum.
A video series is being produced to share the story of the Marshalltown Veterans Memorial
Coliseum, and why it is an important part of this community. Part one of the four-part video
series is now available on the Jason Brown Facebook Page .
The activities at the event will recognize many people and groups that have contributed to the
efforts to rebuild Marshalltown. The concert is being held as part of the 2019 Series of the Along
The Way Tour , and will support the capital campaign needed to restore the venue after it
suffered major damage from an EF-3 tornado that tore through downtown July 19, 2018.
The Community Foundation of Marshall County has already committed $100,000 to support the
campaign, and the Martha-Ellen Tye Foundation has announced the dedication of a $400,000
matching grant to the effort; however, more community support is needed to earn the $1.35
million that will be needed to complete renovations of the 90-year-old community center owned
by the city of Marshalltown.
“It has taken many months to complete the emergency repairs, to get a final figure from our
insurer, and to kick-off the fundraising effort,” said Mayor Joel Greer. “Having a concert with
Jason Brown that supports our historic, grand Coliseum means so much to the veterans it
honors, the community as a whole, and to our fine city staff who will resume doing such a fine
job of programming in this city gem. This event will go a long way to meet the challenge grant
from the Martha-Ellen Tye Foundation.”
During the tornado, 45 children and counselors for a summer day camp program were inside
when the storm tore off the roof to the building. None of the people inside was injured. This
historical building was also heavily damaged from fire water sprinklers running for hours after
the storm. The roof was repaired in the fall and interior gutted down to the studs to dry out the
existing structure. Today, the building remains gutted down to the studs and is not functional for
activities. The structure of the building is sound for renovations. Due to many residential projects
needing repair in town first, the Coliseum has been a project that has been pushed to the side.
The benefit concert from Jason Brown wants to help by offering a concert to bring the
community together and also raise funds to cross this one project off the City of Marshalltown’s
list.
“I love to see towns working together for a common goal. There are several rebuilding projects
going on in Marshalltown and we felt like this project is important for getting all ages and the
town as a whole,” says country music artist Jason Brown.
For more information, an interview request or media inquiries, please contact Andy Erickson.
Footage and media are available for use.
To donate directly to the Veterans Memorial Coliseum effort, visit the City of Marshalltown’s
website .