When Michael Krapovicky of Auburn heard a local fellow musician had been injured in a workplace accident, he knew he had to do something. 

He had been mulling the idea of a semi-regular benefit for some time and decided now was the time to get people involved.

“This is sort of an experiment to see what can happen,” Krapovicky, 38, said of this past Sunday’s benefit for Dave Gagne at the American Legion Hall in Auburn. “There are a lot of people who need help, so maybe this could be a monthly or semi-monthly thing.”

Gagne, a local percussionist, was working in July on a trash truck in Brunswick and the next thing he knew, he woke in a hospital, having suffered a major brain injury.

“I can’t remember what caused it,” Gagne said. “I struck my head on a tree or something. I don’t even know what happened.”

After being kept in a drug-induced coma for several days to help with brain swelling, Gagne awoke not remembering how to talk, with blurry vision and other problems associated with his injury.

Now almost fully recovered, Gagne has finished physical, occupational and speech therapy. He is almost back to himself, and despite having his medical bills covered, there were a few gaps in his budget because he is still out of work.

So Krapovicky gathered seven bands and hosted an all-day concert at the American Legion Post No. 153 in Auburn, where he had been going with his father since he was a kid.

A donation of $5 was suggested, but Krapovicky found an outpouring of support from the people who came and rated the event a success.

“I was happy to get all the musicians involved and in such a relatively short period of time,” he said.

Krapovicky plans to do another benefit in the future, depending on who needs it the most, but he was happy that Gagne received enough to cover his expenses.

“He’s such a good mascot for the  music scene around here,” Krapovicky said of Gagne. “He brings his drums out to every open mic for free. The scene felt empty when he was gone.”

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