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DANVILLE, Ill. (WCIA) — Gao Grotto held its annual Thunder on the Vermilion boat race this weekend, bringing in boaters from all over the Midwest and as far as Long Island, New York.
The money raised from the event helps to fund the organization’s two-week summer camp with AMBUCS — an organization dedicated to helping people with mobility and learning disabilities.
“We have a summer camp that’s been going on for 60 years that this money generates,” Buddy Freed, longtime Gao Grotto member, said. “So we can do things for those kids; their summer camp that they have. It’s two weeks long. We pay for ice cream or snow cones. That’s going to be this year. It’s what they want. We try to make them happy because they’re great kids.”
The event also draws in locals from Vermilion County, who can enjoy food trucks, live music and beverages. Not to mention, they can enjoy watching boats race around Lake Vermilion at 85 miles-per-hour.