Chicago Performs Benefit For Washington Tornado Victims

The victims of November's massive tornadoes in Washington received some musical love Wednesday night in the form of a benefit concert by the band Chicago.

The free concert was held in Bloomington and was designed to help all of the Central Illinois victims of the deadly storms.

"What happened on Nov. 17 -- just hearing about it, I just felt so terribly bad for all of them," band member Walt Parazaider said.

"Hopefully we'll be able to give them a couple of hours of leisure, where they won't have to think about what they have to think about once they leave the concert," band member Lee Loughnane told NBC 5's Carol Marin on the way to the concert.

Washington remains a scarred landscape marred by a EF-4 tornado packing 190 mph winds that destroyed roughly 400 homes.

"It was very hard right after the tornado hit," said Barbara Walsh, whose home was destroyed in the tornado. "It gives us a sense of hope as we're waiting to rebuild."

Seeing the devastation is an almost daily gut punch for Washington mayor Gary Manier but he says Wednesday's concert gives him reason to smile.

"I use the term, 'Our city's gone,' but we're trying to find a positive in all this," Manier said. "That’s what we need, as people keep reaching out to us. We are going to be fine. I just don’t want people to forget about us."

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