Note: this past weekend, the folks at our sister paper Riverfront Times ventured into the breach that is the Gathering of the Juggalos in Hardin County, Illinois. Rocks Off is amazed they made it out in one piece, but they did.
We first heard about 17-year-old Cody Morin on our way in to Cave-In-Rock, Illinois, site of the fourteenth-annual Gathering of the Juggalos. After hours spent driving through Southern Illinois, we stopped at a restaurant/visitor's lodge in the park to ask for directions, where we learned that there was a kid from the Make-A-Wish foundation staying at a cabin that she rented out to visitors.
After a quick phone call to the family, we went out to the cabin and met with the young man, who has a congenital defect in his liver that prevents it from producing one of the enzymes required to do its job properly. His one wish was to meet the members of ICP, his favorite band, and he has traveled over 26 hours from Vermont to make his dream a reality.
Cody's a pretty quiet kid, but like any teenager and self-respecting Juggalo, he's also psyched to see some titties.
REWIND:
Juggalo Eats and a Quest for the Mystical Burrito Man The Gathering of the Juggalos: Misconceptions and First Impressions Death at Juggalo Gathering: "Four Dudes Had Been Sleeping With a Corpse"
With Cody was his mom, Darla Fletcher, a blond woman in her forties who is scheduled to go under the knife alongside Cody in about eight weeks. "No alcohol for me," she laughed. She will be donating a piece of her liver to her son, who is not eligible for a liver from a deceased donor.
"They say he's not sick enough," she says, rolling her eyes. This despite the fact that he has had over ten surgeries in the last year.
"They cut him open and sent him home with a tube sticking out of his stomach." she goes on to say. "And now I have to give him all of these shots. I'm not a doctor, but I had to figure this stuff out."
With the two of them were Cody's sister, Mimi Morin, and his best friend Alias Foster. "He's my brother," Cody explains. "We are really close." Alias is a fresh-faced, 17-year-old landscaper by trade, with an interest in underwater welding. "The mortality rate is really high with that profession though," he says. Alias rolls a blunt and explains to us that this is the first time any of them have ever been to a concert.
Nate "Igor" Smith Mimi Morin, Cody's sister.
"We're Gathering virgins," Cody says. "Hell, we're concert virgins. We've never been to a concert before."
Darla then chimes in with a laugh, "Well, I have."
The family is back to the cabin after spending a few hours at the festival so that Cody, who started feeling sick, can rest. Mimi is impatient but understanding--Anybody Killa is scheduled to play in about 45 minutes, and she want to make sure to get back in time. Cody is quiet; you can see in his face that he is concentrating on feeling well.
