Camping World CEO Donates $500K to Help Businesses Impacted by Nashville Bombing
Camping World CEO Marcus Lemonis has established a new fund to help businesses in Nashville that were impacted by the bombing that took place downtown on Christmas Day (Dec. 25), and he is kicking it off with a personal donation of half a million dollars.
Lemonis turned to social media to announce the Nashville 30 Day Fund on Monday (Dec. 28), just days after a 63-year-old Nashville man parked his RV near Second Avenue North and Commerce Street in the early morning hours and blew it up, causing massive damage to a historic section of Music City and impacting more than 40 local businesses.
"I have put the first $500,000 in! Nashville 30 Day Fund is live and I need your help to spread the word ... the most important RT today," Lemonis writes.
According to its website, the fund is designed to grant loans of up to $100,000 to "small businesses and individuals adversely affected by the Christmas Day Bombing." A business or individual must be located within half a mile of the blast site radius to qualify. The loans do not need to be repaid, though the website states that any business or individual who receives funds and is in a position to "pay it forward" at a later date can contribute back to the fund, where the money will be redisbursed to another business or individual in need.
Authorities have identified Anthony Quinn Warner of Antioch, Tenn., as the bomber, and DNA from the scene indicates he died in the explosion. According to multiple media outlets, Warner prefaced his attack with a bizarre recorded message warning people nearby that the vehicle would explode, which drew the attention of police and resulted in them being able to help clear the area. Nobody apart from Warner died in the blast, with only three reported injuries, and investigators have speculated that he did not intend to cause mass casualties.
The Nashville police, FBI and ATF are all still investigating the motive for the bombing, with several media outlets reporting that they are looking at the possibility that Warner was paranoid about 5G technology and that his attack was directed at the AT&T building that sustained heavy damage in the explosion. AT&T users across Tennessee and several other states suffered service outages for two days after the explosion.
According to Nashville news station WKRN, Lemonis and his team plan to visit Nashville on Wednesday (Dec. 30) to assess the damage from the bombing in person. Visit the Nashville 30 Day Fund's website to donate to the fund. The site also includes a link for those who wish to apply for funds.