MENASHA (NBC 26) — Three months after a tornado tore through Menasha and surrounding communities, a T-shirt created in the aftermath continues to raise money for people recovering from the storm.
The Print House in downtown Menasha began producing its “Menasha Strong” shirts immediately after the tornado. What started as one way for a local business to help quickly grew into a community-wide effort.
“Last year we did just under 10,000 total shirts. In the month of August alone, we did more than 8,000 shirts. We almost doubled our business in a month,” co-owner Nick Siegel said.
Those shirts became a familiar sight across Menasha in the weeks following the storm.
“If you go by the numbers, half of Menasha has a shirt, walking around, proudly wearing,” Siegel said.
For Siegel, however, the shirts were about much more than business.
The Print House reopened the day after the tornado, and Siegel said the shop soon put its normal operation on hold to focus almost entirely on the fundraiser.
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“That is the only thing we printed in July and August, was the Menasha Strong shirt,” Siegel said. “We shut our business down, we made no profit, all money was donated. Fourteen-, 15-hour days, just Menasha Strong.”
One shirt after another and one order after another, the effort ultimately raised more than $128,000 for storm relief.
“We never thought it would be this big,” Siegel said.
The earlier fundraising effort drew not only customers, but volunteers who stepped in to help The Print House keep up with demand. People helped print, fold and package shirts as orders poured in.
Three months after the tornado, the demand has not completely disappeared. Customers were still walking into The Print House looking for Menasha Strong shirts during NBC26’s interview with Siegel.
“It brings a true sense of community,” Siegel said.
The Print House continues to sell the shirts, and Siegel says profits from those sales are still being donated.
For a business that normally prints apparel for its customers, the Menasha Strong shirt has become something different: a reminder of how the community responded in the days and weeks after a disaster, and an effort that is continuing three months later.
