Originally published on WDTV 5
Written by Madeline Edwards
MORGANTOWN, W.Va (WDTV) – Big Daddy Guns called on Protect Morgantown for a challenge to raise money for students in need.
The Monongalia County Deputy Sheriff’s Association reached out to Big Daddy Guns to see if they would become a sponsor for the annual Back to School Bash. This provided students in need with supplies for school.
Co-founder of Big Daddy, Sherrie McKnight, said she was thrilled to contribute to the community.
“We already see ourselves as a part of Morgantown. So, receiving a call from the deputies saying, hey, we have not achieved our goal. Would you be interested in helping? Right away, it is an immediate yes,” McKnight explained.
McKnight and Nicholas Lahera, Public Relations Coordinator for Big Daddy, told 5 News they decided to publicly ask Protect Morgantown to join them to fundraise for students in need and come together despite their differences.
“But we can drop that right now. We can decide to out raise each other, and you know what? The person who wins great for them. All the kids win. But whoever the winner is, gets you know possibly get rid of us,” McKnight added.
In the press release shared on the Greater Morgantown Forum on Facebook and Big Daddy’s Instagram, if Protect Morgantown accepted the challenge from Big Daddy, whoever fundraised the most would determine if Big Daddy would open at The Deck.
But Lahera said they’re donating either way.
“Regardless of whether or not they take the challenge or they respond, we are going to continue raising this money because it is the right thing to do for the community,” he explained.
The money was being fundraised through GiveSendGo and would go directly to the Deputy Sheriff’s Association.
Lahera added that they had not heard anything from Protect Morgantown or the group’s organizer, Jodi Hollingshead.
On Thursday morning, Protect Morgantown released a statement on the proposed challenge on Facebook, saying “it’s not surprising that [Big Daddy Guns] would use children as ploys in their PR campaign to further divide Morgantown residents.”
The statement goes on to say Big Daddy Guns is “dipping into the pockets of Morgantown residents to support their manipulative PR tactic” and demonstrates their “lack of understanding of the people of Morgantown.”
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