Chances are, if you’ve patronized the Belly Up in the last 25 years, you’ve been helped by Steve Roder. But on Monday night, the tall, affable night manager will be the one asking for help.
Roder is throwing a benefit for his nephew, Andy Roder-Powell, who was diagnosed in 2008 with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) -- a result of the rare kidney/blood disorder atypical Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (aHUS). Roder-Powell successfully received a donor kidney in April, but four years of medical bills for treatments, medications, and dialysis have been a devastating burden for the family.
To help offset these costs, Roder has put together the “REGGAE to the RESCUE” benefit taking place at the Belly Up on July 2. Common Sense, Shoreline Rootz, and the Devastators will provide the music, while Transworld Surf/Fuel TV’s Chris Cote will handle hosting duties.
“Andy’s taking it all very well,” Roder said recently during a break at work. “He’s really embraced the opportunities that this has given him, especially meeting new people and doing new things. But when I saw what it was doing to both him and my sister, I thought to myself, ‘well, I can do something about this.’”
And while Roder is excited by the evening’s musical roster, he’s been overwhelmed by the tremendous outpouring of donations from local businesses. A small sampling from the extensive list of raffle and auction items include autographed footballs & surfboards, Hawaiian vacations, salon & spa packages, and trips to Baja.
But if all goes as planned, the focus of the evening will remain on Andy.
“He’s a great kid,” said Roder. “He’s been through a lot and I’m happy that we’re going to be able to do this for him. It should be a great night and will do a lot of good.”
Blogger Scott McDonald covers music in San Diego for a few different publications and is the editor of Eight24.com
