Photo by Tim Duffy

Levon Helm, a Music Maker Advisory Board member and supporter, passed away yesterday at the age of 71. He will be missed by all of us, but his contributions to music will live on, and we will remember him fondly.

Tim Duffy, Music Maker’s Founder, recounts their first meeting with Helm:

Denise Duffy picked up the phone one Sunday afternoon in 2002 and Levon Helm was on the line. He had heard about Music Maker and wanted to know how he could help and he invited us to visit him at his home in Woodstock, NY. Soon after Denise and I attended a small festival in New Hampshire where Levon was playing and drove back to his home. We spent the afternoon in his back yard sitting around a campfire by his small pond.  Later that evening we moved to his music room where Levon told us of his plans to begin a Midnight Ramble. With a few friends and Levon on his “Cocktail Kit” drum set, we played music with until wee hours. Late that night, Levon took Denise and I up to the loft of his music barn where he had laid out a pallet of blankets and pillows on the floor and tucked us into bed. Later that summer, Levon joined our Advisory Board and performed a benefit concert for Music Maker in Washington, D.C. that raised $50,000 for our programs.

We cherish his memory and our thoughts and prayers are with his family.