Nick Tarlowski knows what it’s like.

Eight years ago, his mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. She beat it, fortunately, but the effect the disease had on the Tarlowski family was tremendous.

Maybe that’s why he’s doing this. Maybe that’s why he’s devoted his past two months to it. Maybe he knows how it feels, and maybe he wants to fix it.

This Saturday, Tarlowski, a member of Lincoln bands JV All*Stars and Good With Guns, hosts Rock Over Lincoln, a benefit concert for the family of Ian Loewe, a survivor of alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare form of soft-tissue cancer.

Over the past year, 9-year-old Ian and his family have fought the disease, and it now looks like they’ve got it beat. But the cost of saving Ian’s life was tremendous — too much for most any family to afford.

Enter Tarlowski. He heard about the Loewes’ situation through his family’s church, Faith Lutheran.

The congregation was trying to put together some kind of benefit show, but Tarlowski saw they didn’t have the resources or connections to pull it off.

As one of the most active members of the Lincoln music scene, Tarlowski took control, turning what was going to be a small event inside the church into “an indoor Warped Tour.”

“It went from being a two-band show in the church to 12 bands on two stages,” he said.

As soon as Tarlowski started approaching bands to play, the schedule filled fast.

“We had near zero difficulty (recruiting bands),” he said. “I gave each band a rundown of the idea of the show and who else I would be going after, and that kind of drew it all together. I think we’ve got some of the best bands in Lincoln and Omaha as far as draw and entertainment goes.”

Some bands on the roster — Anchondo, Straight Outta Junior High, Forty Twenty — typically draw one or two hundred people alone. With the combined crowds of the bands, Tarlowski said he’s expecting close to 1,000 people.

“I hope this is something people will want to go to not necessarily because it’s a benefit, but because it’s bands they want to see,” he said.

Andy Ringsmuth, a member of Faith Lutheran who’s been coordinating other fundraising efforts with the church, said Tarlowski’s involvement has made a huge difference to the planned event and hopes it also makes a huge difference to the fund-raising efforts and the Loewe family.

“He’s been involved in the local music scene for a long time, and he knows what cancer can do to a family,” Ringsmuth said. “He’s blown me away as far as what he’s been able to pull off.”

Reach Joel Gehringer at 473-7254 or jgehringer@journalstar.com.