Red Key Tavern GoFundMe raises over $20,000 in four days for owner's surgery

When a decades-old SoBro staple fell on hard times, its community didn't waste a moment lending a hand to keep the bar afloat.

Jim Settle, the second-generation owner of the Red Key Tavern, lost his wife Dollie, 70, to cancer in late January. Days later, doctors told Settle he would need open heart surgery to remove multiple blockages.

And a few days after Settle heard the news, longtime Red Key employee Nora Spitznogle started a GoFundMe to help with Jim's medical bills and to cover revenue lost while he closed the bar to mourn Dollie. In less than a week since Spitznogle posted the GoFundMe on Feb. 2, it has raised more than $27,000.

Spitznogle, senior director of programs at Second Helpings, Inc., moved to a home about three blocks from the iconic tavern nearly 30 years ago. She became a frequent customer and then an employee, working as waiter, cook and bottle washer. Her work at Second Helpings has limited her Red Key shifts to Saturday nights, but she stayed to work in the family business she loves.

Spitznogle grieved with Red Key staff and customers after Dollie died. Having recently lost a close family member herself, she marveled at how Settle juggled keeping his business open while mourning, all on top of his medical issues.

"The thought of having to worry about personal finances in the midst of all this just seemed to add a whole other layer of grief and worry," she said.

As news of Settle's surgery spread, Spitznogle began receiving messages from people asking how they could help, reminding her of what the bar means to so many people.

"The Red Key has always just been a North Star of the neighborhood," she said.

The Red Key opened as the Old English Tavern in 1933 shortly after the end of Prohibition. The bar changed hands several times until 1951, when Russel Settle and Fran Gasper took over. After Gasper retired in 1970, Russ Settle owned Red Key until his death in 2010. His son Jim has operated the iconic watering hole ever since.

Spitznogle jokes that if someone tells her they haven't been to the Red Key in a while, she assures them they haven't missed anything. The same tables that filled the bar when Russ Settle bought it in 1951 are still there.

"It's the place where people come when they have exciting news, happy news and sad news," Spitznogle said. "Everybody has a Red Key story."

For now, Settle's story appears to be trending in a happier direction. Spitznogle said he came through "with flying colors." She doesn't know whether the money raised will be enough to completely offset Settle's medical bills and lost revenue, but she has no doubt it has touched his steadily recovering heart.

"It means so much to the family," Spitznogle said. "They feel very loved and supported. Not only the financial part, but just knowing they're not alone."

Contact dining reporter Bradley Hohulin at [email protected]. You can follow him on Twitter @bradleyhohulin.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Red Key Tavern GoFundMe raises $20K in four days for owner's surgery