Never let a good disaster go to waste.One of the amazing tremors to reverberate through our lives since Rick's untimely passing is the outpouring of support from Rick's far-reaching circle of friends, fans, and admirers: as his biological family, we've been floored by the Denver punk community and the Southeast Denver baseball community, both of whom just seized the reins and did what needed to be done. His 15-year-old twin boys, Richard and Roman, whom he raised as a single parent, were now the focus of every fundraising effort imaginable. Within days, the Richard Kulwicki Memorial Fund was set up, along with a PayPal account, and the Pure Sunshine Celebration & Benefit, in conjunction other events, was scheduled. 
The tributes came from everywhere: good friend Troy DeBaca, who, coincidentally, sat in the last classroom our father ever taught at Park Lane Elementary, donated all profits from the sale of these fabulous Pure Sunshine T's, as did another anonymous designer who altered the Budweiser logo to read "Kulwicki", and underneath, "King of Men", rather than "King of Beer." Rick was a Bud guy, so its apropos either way.
The tributes came from everywhere: good friend Troy DeBaca, who, coincidentally, sat in the last classroom our father ever taught at Park Lane Elementary, donated all profits from the sale of these fabulous Pure Sunshine T's, as did another anonymous designer who altered the Budweiser logo to read "Kulwicki", and underneath, "King of Men", rather than "King of Beer." Rick was a Bud guy, so its apropos either way. Guitars and Fluid (Rick's most well-known band) rarities were auctioned off, and all proceeds from the show were donated by The Bluebird (the very definition of Denver alternative cool. Best venue to play. If you have to go larger, you've officially gotten too big fer yer britches and probably aren't worth hearing anyway).
The Kulwicki boys. Fifteen years old and playing the Bluebird? There are no final frontiers to conquer.
Another irresistible shot, including fellow bandmate, Henry. Whom we love just like he was our own. He practically is.
The Purple Fluid. I'm obviously biased, but this was the highlight of both nights of the show, certainly the emotional apex of all of the sets of the other 16 bands who graced the stage to honor their friend and mentor. Richard's on lead vocals, Roman's on the far left on guitar, Henry, and Garrett Shavlik, Rick's dear friend and former bandmate who flew in from Seattle to ably back them on drums. When former Fluid lead singer John Robinson joined on a few Fluid covers, I'm pretty sure the heavens parted. 
A favorite action shot, and on the right is Orrie, whose mom Nia is just the backbone of the operation.
The aforementioned John Robinson as gone above and beyond in creating much of the media for this fundraising extravaganza, which surely reaches far beyond these shows...these are the pass-along cards, for lack of a better term. The text reads: "Q: What would Ricky do? A: The right thing." Which, at the end of the day, is why all of these fabulous people converged in the first place: you could always count on Ricky to do what was right, even when it was inconvenient, ugly, messy, and in direct opposition to his best interest. What we have experienced is the concept of paying it forward. Which is the best tribute anyone could offer him.
The Kulwicki boys. Fifteen years old and playing the Bluebird? There are no final frontiers to conquer.
Another irresistible shot, including fellow bandmate, Henry. Whom we love just like he was our own. He practically is.
The Purple Fluid. I'm obviously biased, but this was the highlight of both nights of the show, certainly the emotional apex of all of the sets of the other 16 bands who graced the stage to honor their friend and mentor. Richard's on lead vocals, Roman's on the far left on guitar, Henry, and Garrett Shavlik, Rick's dear friend and former bandmate who flew in from Seattle to ably back them on drums. When former Fluid lead singer John Robinson joined on a few Fluid covers, I'm pretty sure the heavens parted. 
A favorite action shot, and on the right is Orrie, whose mom Nia is just the backbone of the operation.
The aforementioned John Robinson as gone above and beyond in creating much of the media for this fundraising extravaganza, which surely reaches far beyond these shows...these are the pass-along cards, for lack of a better term. The text reads: "Q: What would Ricky do? A: The right thing." Which, at the end of the day, is why all of these fabulous people converged in the first place: you could always count on Ricky to do what was right, even when it was inconvenient, ugly, messy, and in direct opposition to his best interest. What we have experienced is the concept of paying it forward. Which is the best tribute anyone could offer him.
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And time for credit when it is due: good friend my dear brother, Jill, is responsible for most of these shots...she's amazing, what she can capture on film.
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