Friends and fans step up for entertainer Al Simmons following fire

Friends and fans raise funds for Al Simmons See how much a fundraising effort following a fire that destroyed the ‘magical workshop’ of Al Simmons has earned

Friends and fans have raised more than $50,000 for Manitoba entertainer Al Simmons.

Musician and colleague Heather Bishop set up a fundraising campaign for Simmons after a fire tore through storage trailers in Anola, east of Winnipeg, earlier in February.

The sheds contained all of Simmons’ props and costumes, and very few of them were saved.

READ MORE: 'Just gone': Entertainer Al Simmons loses irreplaceable show supplies in fire

Simmons isn't giving up though. With help from his wife, Barb, and people like Bishop he's rebuilt about a dozen items so far.

Bishop said about 700 people donated money to the campaign, which will be taken down in the coming days, and many others have also been helping out by offering supplies.

“I can't tell you how many messages came through with, ‘I’ve got a new flute you can cut up to make something with’, and ‘I’ve got an old trombone’, or ‘My dad saved this particular thing I’ve never known what to do with, but you could turn it into something,’” said Bishop, describing some of the offers.

“So in a way he’s going to have a new storage shed full of neat stuff to start creating new things with."

Simmons’ first major show since the fire is in April.