Garth Brooks has filed a half-million dollar lawsuit against a hospital in the Oklahoma town where he was raised, claiming a donation he made wasn’t used the way it was intended.
According to CNN, the recently un-retired country crooner donated $500,000 to the Integris Canadian Valley Regional Hospital in Yukon, Oklahoma, about four years ago, with the understanding the money would be used to build a medical facility in honor of his late mother, Colleen, who died from cancer in 1999.
However, after the hospital reportedly spent $27 million in renovations last year, there was still no sign of the building named after his mother. Now, the country superstar is suing to get his money back.
The lawsuit was filed in September in Rogers County District Court in Oklahoma.
A spokesperson for the hospital told CNN it was simply a misunderstanding and that Integris was “optimistic that it will come to a swift and amicable end.”
But a local city councilman wasn’t as tame in his take on the situation.
“Yukon has done a lot to help promote Garth Brooks over the years, and this is what he does to return the favor, sue our hospital over a misunderstanding,” Yukon city councilman John Tipps told The Yukon Review. “Maybe Yukon should consider removing his name from the street signs and the water tower. This is very unfortunate for the hospital, City of Yukon and its citizens.”
Meanwhile, a source close to Brooks – who announced he was coming out of retirement in October – said the entire ordeal has left the singer emotionally rattled.
“His heart is broken,” the source told Access Hollywood. “This deals with his mother, his home town and the people he grew up with and is deeply personal.”
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