Surviving Members Of GWAR Release Video Statement, Launch DAVE BROCKIE FOUNDATION

The surviving members of GWAR and Slave Pit Inc. would like to thank the fans and friends for the outpouring of love after the passing of their dear friend, GWAR frontman Dave Brockie (a.k.a. Oderus Urungus). Their intention is to honor Dave, preserve his legacy and continue to share his brilliant works with the world. With that being said, GWAR and Slave Pit Inc. are proud to announce the creation of the Dave Brockie Foundation.

A video message from GWAR and Slave Pit Inc. addressing the fans can be viewed below.

The Dave Brockie Foundation is a charity fund with the mission of promoting the advancement of music, images, letters and performances in the arts. It will endeavor to encourage promising talents, as well as preserving the legacy of Dave's body of works. It intends to be a support system to those who have dedicated their lives in pursuit of creativity. The Dave Brockie Foundation will be a resource for artists in the fields of music, film, literature and all visual arts who cannot find funding through mainstream channels. The Dave Brockie Foundation will also strive to catalog and preserve Dave's vast collection of original images, recordings and written words, and make them available for the world to appreciate. The foundation's first goal is to finance the creation of a memorial monument in Richmond, Virginia to provide the world with a place to pay respects to the memory of a very cherished man.

Donations can be made to the Dave Brockie Foundation at this location.

Brockie was found dead in his home in Richmond on March 23. He was 50 years old.

GWAR manager Jack Flanagan released a statement saying, "It is with a saddened heart that I confirm my dear friend Dave Brockie, artist, musician, and lead singer of GWAR, passed away at approximately 6:50 p.m. EST Sunday, March 23, 2014 . . . A full autopsy will be performed. He was 50 years old, born August 30, 1963. My main focus right now is to look after my bandmates and his family."

Brockie is the second member of GWAR to die within the past three years. Guitarist Cory Smoot, who played the character Flattus Maximus, died of a heart attack on the band's tour bus in November 2011 at the age of 34.

Brockie said at the time, "I think Cory's death is a big wake-up call for all of us. We all breathed a big sigh of relief when we found out it wasn't a drug overdose, to speak quite frankly. But then to think that he was 34 and died of a heart attack — it's really scary."

According to The Pulse Of Radio, Brockie was the last remaining original member of GWAR, which was founded 30 years ago. The future of the band at this stage is uncertain.

The satirical metal band earned a following for its macabre, over-the-top costumes, offensive lyrics and graphic, gore-soaked shows, in which the band members performed as the descendants of alien warriors who arrived on Earth to enslave and slaughter the human race.

The band released its 13th album, "Battle Maximus", last year.