Benefit concert to support first responders, victims of Grand Blanc church attack

Oakland University Professor Thayer Jonutz will present a special concert on Saturday, Nov. 15, to raise funds for first responders and members of the Grand Blanc, Mich. community who were impacted by the tragic mass shooting and arson attack at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Sept. 28, 2025.

"I've been a lifelong member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and while the Grand Blanc congregation is not my weekly house of worship or congregation, it is part of what we call it the 'stake center,' which is where we meet for conferences and where all of the local congregations within that geographical boundary meet at least twice a year," said Jonutz, an associate professor of dance and director of the Repertory Dance Company at OU.

"It is also a building that has housed many youth activities, and I've taken my own children there," he added. "So this attack hit very close to home, even though I did not know any of the victims directly."

Just prior to the attack, Jonutz was in New York taking part in a week-long residency at The Artist's Residency at The Center, an immersive program for Latter-day Saint artists put on by the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts, where he had been working on a new performance piece, titled "Scorched."

"Even before the attack happened, I just felt this urgency to finish 'Scorched' and I didn't know why," he said. "I just had this strong impulse that I needed to finish it."

The attack occurred less than a week after he completed his residency in New York and returned to Michigan.

"I got home on a Monday, and the attack happened the following Sunday," he said. "Almost immediately after it happened, I got this strong impression that I needed to add a final section to 'Scorched,' that I'm loosely titling 'My Church in Ashes.' It's my way of just kind of processing the attack, memorializing it, and honoring the victims."

The world premiere of "Scorched" will take place during the benefit concert, which will be held at 7 p.m. on Nov. 15 at Eisenhower Dance Detroit, located at 450 Enterprise Ct. in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. Doors will open at 6:30 p.m.

Jonutz will also be performing his signature work, "Hammer and Nail," - a multi-disciplined performance merging dance, theatre surround sound music composition, creative writing and set design - during the concert.

"It's going to be very intense performing back-to-back, solo works like that," he said. "It'll be an outpouring of physicality, of energy, of mental and emotional focus."

Tickets are $40 and seating is limited. Funds raised during the event will be used to support the Victim Compassion Fund, which is managed by the ELGA Credit Union Foundation for impact and was established by the Grand Blanc Township Police Department in partnership with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc to support the victims of the attack.

Oakland University President Ora Hirsch Pescovitz, who will be unable to attend the benefit concert, has already pledged $1,000 toward the cause.

"It was extremely generous of her," Jonutz said.

Anyone who cannot attend the benefit concert but would like to support the Victim Compassion Fun can still donate $40 in order to sponsor a seat for someone who cannot afford the donation price. Simply email Jonutz at [email protected] and state your donation amount and your intentions.

"Please state in your email to me how much you donated, and whether you are attending or are sponsoring someone else's seat that cannot afford it and would like to be there," Jonutz said.

To donate directly to the Victim Compassion Fund, visit https://bit.ly/4pTHJVp.