After North Carolina's 85-83 victory over Duke, revelers flooded Franklin Street to celebrate. But the celebration became destructive when partyers overturned two vehicles, damaging one possibly beyond repair.
Tom Benfield of Cedar Grove, who watched the game and the postgame festivities on television, said he was angry when he saw the celebration after the Duke game turn into a breaking story about vandalism and violence.
"It was uncalled for, and it made for a bad end to a great night and great celebration," Benfield said. "It was just bad for the image of Tar Heel fans."
Benfield said he decided to do something to help that image by raising money for Mindy Guadagnino, 26, whose 1997 Honda Accord was damaged by vandals. Benfield said he is going to open a bank account in Guadagnino's name and then try to collect donations from UNC students at the Pit. "I'm looking for any student organization to go along with me on this and help me with the collecting of donations," he said.
Guadagnino said she couldn't believe it when she heard about Benfield's idea.
"It's overwhelming and amazing,"she said. "It's just awesome that some Tar Heel fans will go out of their way to redeem themselves for the actions of other fans."
Guadagnino also said she was unsure of the damage estimate because her insurance company will not be able to take a look at her car until today, at the earliest.
Guadagnino's car was just one that were damaged in the celebration. UNC junior Sarah Coffey paid $225 to get damages to her 1999 Nissan Sentra repaired. Coffey said that no one except her father offered her any financial assistance.
Benfield said he plans to take a half-day off work from his job at a post office in Durham to get some things done for the project benefiting Guadagnino. "I'm doing this for Tar Heel fans everywhere; I feel like it's just my turn to do something for someone," Benfield said.
