Music Maker Helps Larry Shores & Works To Identify Musicians Impacted By Hurricane Harvey
inTheir Needson August 31, 2017
The Musician Sustenance Program was the first program established by MMRF in 1994 and is designed to help musicians in crisis and to ease the chronic poverty endured by many of America’s senior musicians.
Music Maker’s first experience with helping the victims of large scale natural disasters came in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in 2005, when we raised over $200,000 to help over 100 NOLA musicians to rebuild their lives. In August 2016, when devastating floods hit Baton Rouge, we raised over $62,000 to provide assistance to more than 40 musicians and their families.
As we see these natural disasters becoming a regular occurrence, Music Maker has expanded the emergency grant relief arm of its Musician Sustenance Program to deftly respond to these crises.
As the storm abates, we are reaching out to our community of musicians to find out who has been impacted. Already, we find songwriter and banjo player Larry Shores has lost his home in Rockport, Texas. We know there are dozens more working musicians like Larry in Texas and East Louisiana. Our first step will be to interview these artists to find out what they need to stabilize their situation in terms of interim housing, medical care, and any other immediate needs. Over the next few months, much more assistance will be needed in order to rebuild their homes and replace the musical instruments and equipment they need to begin to work again. In disasters like these, musician’s livelihoods sustain long-term damage because the communities they live and work in have been so disrupted and the entertainment sector is always one of the last to recover.
We work with the artists one on one and put funds directly into their hands. We also keep in close communication with sister organizations, like the Jazz Foundation of America to coordinate efforts for maximum benefit to the artists that need help.
Music Maker Relief Foundation is ready to respond to the needs of victims of Hurricane Harvey. If you would like to make a gift to help these musicians, please write Musician Sustenance Fund in the special instructions when making your donation online or by check.
DONATE NOW to MMRF’s Musician Sustenance Fund, which supports emergency relief efforts, to help artists like Larry Shores recover and rebuild!
Listen to Larry Shores album Songs of T-Town:
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We are all thinking about you. Will try to raise some help if I can. Sorry to hear about the house, hope the boat is OK.
We are all thinking about you. Will try to raise some help if I can. Sorry to hear about the house, hope the boat is OK.