Hello Friends,

Our beloved friend and long-time tour manager, Bill Handlin was hit by car in Portland while crossing a crosswalk. The impact broke both his legs and his neck and caused a severe concussion. He is currently laying in a hospital bed in Portland having undergone surgery.

Doctors expect him to recover but he’ll be in a neck brace for 3 months and confined to a wheelchair for 6 months.

Those of you who know Bill know he’s a gem of a human being. The kindest tour manager in rock and roll, a dad, a husband, a person who has a genuine love of music and a genuine connection to the Airborne community.

Bill shows such kindness to every tech, every fan. Everywhere he goes, venue operators tell us what a great person he is to work with. For us, he organizes meet and greets, sets the stage, builds the set, mixes the sound, all while managing crews of up to 50 people. He always takes time for fans, making sure people get their posters signed, walking stuff backstage simply because he cares.

He loves the band, loves the community, loves being a part of it. He told me the other day from the hospital bed that the band is “on a mission to spread empathy” and that being a part of that mission has given his life purpose.

He’s family, as far as we’re concerned.

Bill lives with his family in Colorado. As you know, being a tour manager is gig work and Bill will be in a wheelchair for the next six months and unable to work to support his family. He’ll also have sizable medical bills for all of the rehabilitation. Furthermore, his health insurance company will not pay for his medical transport from Portland back home which places him, his 8 year-old son and his wonderful wife in a tough spot.

The Airborne Toxic Event will be helping out by making a sizable contribution to help. We’d like you to join us. So we’ve set up a GoFundMe for Bill and his family to cover transport, lost wages, and medical expenses.

We know many of you know Bill and have expressed a desire to help. Please give whatever you can and thank you so much.

We love this guy.

Mikel, Steven, Daren, Adrian, Mimi

The Airborne Toxic Event