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Glenn Beck coming to I.F.
43.490842;-112.039087
Glenn Beck, a nationally known conservative talk show host, will soon be coming to Idaho to raise money for a Rexburg family whose members struggle with disabilities. At 6:30 p.m. Feb. 1, Beck will put on a program to benefit the Ruth and Rick Clark family of Rexburg at the Idaho Falls Civic Auditorium. ''My boys all wound up in wheelchairs when they were 12 to 14 years old,'' said Ruth Clark.
Three of the family's four sons live at the family home in Rexburg. The Web site www.deseretbook.com/tickets/beckcontains information about the family and the show as well as ticket information.
Beck's show is titled Inconvenient Life Stories: A Benefit Show for the Clark family. ''The tone is like his Christmas programs, entertaining but touching on serious issues,'' said Josh Raffel, a spokesman for Beck.
The site states: ''While visiting Rexburg, Glenn Beck met the Clark family and was inspired by their positive approach to the problems they encounter day to day as they deal with the debilitating effects of muscular dystrophy. He wanted to help make life a little easier for them. Four of their five children are affected with the disease and are confined to wheelchairs. The fifth child, a daughter, died a few years ago of a rare disease. ''The mother, Ruth Clark, works full time to support the family because the father is disabled. Both parents work together to provide medical care and transportation for their children. The main need of the family is for housing improvements so that wheelchairs and other appliances can be accommodated as their mother often has to lift and carry them in places the wheelchairs can't access.''
Carma Sutherland, who lives near the Clark family, has been instrumental in putting the program together. She said she became acquainted with Beck when he came to Rexburg to speak at a Republican fundraiser last summer.
''While he was here he saw Ruth putting her boys into her car,'' Sutherland said. ''He said, 'Stop, go back -I want to meet her.''' She said Beck was impressed with the independence of the family but noticed the challenges they experienced in their small home.
''A little while later, he called me and said he wanted to do something for that family,'' she said. ''That's how it got started. He saw the need for some wheelchair accessibility in their home.'' Sutherland said the tickets range from $20 to $100 depending on where the seats are in the auditorium.
She said there is a limited number of tickets at a higher cost for special seating and a chance to meet the Clark family and Beck before the show. ''They would have prime seats, a reception, a photo opportunity and receive a personalized copy of his book, 'An Inconvenient Book,''' she said.
The book will also be available for sale at the show as part of the fundraising effort. The special tickets can be purchased by calling Sutherland at (208) 356-3944 or (208) 313-6907. Sutherland said Beck and Deseret Book are donating all their royalties from the show and the money will go into a nonprofit fund set up for the Clark family by the city of Rexburg. Donations can also be made on the Web site www. clarkfamilybenefit.org, by mail at the address: Clark Family Benefit, P.O. Box 280, Rexburg, ID, 83440, or at the Deseret Book site, www.deseretbook.com. BY JOSEPH LAW Standard Journal Article RatingReader CommentsSubmit a CommentCommenting RulesWe encourage your feedback and dialog. All comments are subject to deletion by our Web staff.
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