15-Hour Fundraiser Planned for Fallen Livonia Police Officer's Family

Three Buffalo Wild Wings restaurants are holding a fundraiser from 11 a.m. today to 2 a.m. Saturday to benefit the family of fallen Livonia Police Officer Larry Nehasil.  The restaurants are in , and Livonia.

Rob Truman, general manager at the Canton location, said each restaurant will donate 20 percent of sales to the Nehasil family.

Nehasil is the first Livonia police officer to be shot to death on the job. He died Jan. 17 while working an undercover assignment in Walled Lake. His survivors include his wife, Linda; sons, Adam and Aaron; and mother, Monica Nehasil.

The fundraiser must be mentioned for the donation to be counted, according to the Facebook page “In Memory of Officer Larry Nehasil.”

“When we heard about it, we wanted to help,” said Scott Fysh, general manager of Livonia’s Buffalo Wild Wings. He said the fundraiser among the three stores was set up with the restaurant chain's corporate offices.

Truman said word spread about the fundraiser from many avenues including Facebook, township Web sites and fliers.

“There have been a lot of people who heard about it,” Fysh said. “E-mails were sent out to all the police officers and firefighters.”

In addition to the Friday fundraiser, Truman said Canton’s Buffalo Wild Wings has had a donation box for Nehasil’s family at the front of the store for about two weeks.

The Livonia location also has a box for leaving donations and notes for the Nehasil family. Fysh said he expects the box to be filled up throughout the day.

“We haven’t had to do anything at all,” said Kara Graci, Nehasil’s niece. “We’re not asking for fundraisers. They just keep happening.”

She said the family has been working with the Livonia Police department to ensure the legitimacy of the fundraisers.

“We’re just very community driven,” Truman said about why Buffalo Wild Wings is participating. “We get involved with lots of community events and … we want to help out.”