Giant falling tree vs.Ronan Chris Murphy’s studio

UPDATE Saturday March 19th 2023:

Ronan and Liz wanted me to tell everyone that they are *completely* blown away by everyone’s amazing generosity! It is far more than they ever could have imagined.

They want everyone to know that everyone’s generosity has got them out of the “most extreme crisis mode. “

I know that they do still have huge expenses in front of them….. and it will be a

a long hard road ahead, but they are now able to address the up front immediate emergency expenses.

A huge thank you to everyone!

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Ronan was in the bathroom brushing his teeth when the 150 foot, 7,000 pound pine tree cut his home and studio into two pieces.

It’s called an atmospheric river, but for Ronan it meant 5 feet of snow in 48 hours and then rain, and then, just before the weekend, 65 mile-per-hour winds. The majestic, 100-year-old pine tree just couldn’t hold onto the wet ground in all that wind and it came toppling over. It was impressive that the roof held for a moment, but gravity did its work and the weight of the tree cut through the house with medical precision. Soon after that the floors started collapsing.

The tree crushed the couch and kitchen where Ronan had been just minutes before.

Ronan said the initial hit didn’t scare him as he stood in the bathroom polishing his molars. It was only when the roof gave way with a huge crash that he knew something terrible had happened. Not many people can say that dental hygiene saved their life!

Luckily only “stuff” was destroyed (Ronan and Liz were not injured) but that stuff was the livelihood and life’s work of someone who has touched many.

Much of what wasn’t immediately squashed was trapped in a structurally unsafe building. No one could safely get on the roof to pull tarps over the gaping hole, but some courageous volunteers from his community helped salvage any equipment that could be safely reached. What was left has now been irreparably damaged by the ongoing river of snow and rain.

Tens of thousands of dollars worth of gear that Ronan uses in his business every day was lost, including some irreplaceable custom equipment, most notably his one of a kind mastering speakers. The tree crushed all of the photography equipment he uses for the free recording education videos he posts. It also took out gear he was selling to raise money to help some friends who had been recently widowed or were facing major medical emergencies.

Ronan was insured for both the building and the equipment, but the policies won’t cover full replacement value. Insurance will also not cover the cost to remove the tree and demolish the building. The losses, even with the insurance check, will be upward of $75,000 or more, and the road back to his normal, productive life will be a long one.

I’ve created this Go Fund Me for Ronan because he won’t do it himself. I have known Ronan for 28 years, and he never seems to ask for anything for himself.

Ronan is getting hit with an avalanche of unexpected expenses. The tree clearance and demolition are going to be incredibly expensive, and more importantly, he needs to rebuild his studio and home so he can get back to what he should really be doing: helping others and making great music!

Any donation, no matter the size, will help.

Thank you for helping a dear friend rebuild.

https://ronanchrismurphy.com/