IRONDEQUOIT, N.Y. -- Old friends and patrons of Silk O'Loughlin's in Irondequoit gathered at Ontario Beach Park on Sunday to have a good time for a good cause. Wet weather could do little to stop hundreds from coming out to support the well-known local bar, which saw some of the worst flooding this past spring, and is now closed indefinitely due to the high water and damage caused.
The fundraiser was the brainchild not of the bar's owner, but of the patrons of Silk O'Loughlin's — the owner says he plans to use the proceeds from this fundraiser to give back to his employees, rather than rebuilding.
"Everyone felt bad because the bar is closed,” said Michael McKeon, the owner of the bar. “A lot of people are going to be out of work but we didn't think it was going to be this long. We thought it was going to be a couple weeks. But as we started to organize this, we started to realize, this water is not going to go away anytime soon. It's going to be a long time."