LA musician, hat maker calls on celebs to raise funds for Navajo Nation amid coronavirus crisis

LOS ANGELES - His custom hats are worn by names like Sheryl Crow and Chris Robinson of the Black Crowes. Now those same hats are autographed and being auctioned off during the coronavirus pandemic.

Hat maker Charlie Overbey says 100% of the profits are going to the Navajo Nation hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.

Overbey has his hat shop in Highland Park. He's also a musician and turned to his famous friends to send back a hat he'd made for them to be auctioned off.

The first "lid" came from Richard Fortus of Guns N' Roses.

While Overbey has been to the Navajo Nation the inspiration for the fundraiser came from friend and actor Raoul Max Trujillo from the Mayan MC series who's of indigenous descent. They partnered with Dr. Michelle Tom a Navajo doctor who's appeared on national news during the pandemic. The Navajo Nation has the highest per capita COVID-19 infection rate in the U.S. "outpacing hot spots like New York. 

For the fundraiser, Overbey says "our goal was to raise 20k and we are already about at 30 thousand."

Overbey's hats are upcycled. "I use old shells and I refurbish so we are not harming any new animals in the process. I take hats from maybe the 1800s because of the quality back then." To buy one it would cost $385 to $1200 minus the autograph. They take five or six days to make.

In a sign of the times, the auction is on social media.  Bidders can bid on the Lone Hawk Instagram page @lonehawkhats through Sunday. The auction will end with a raffle signed by celebs tied to the "Lone Hawk Hat family."