Island Groups Plan March 19 Benefit Concert for Orphan Victims of Tsunami

by Anri Wheeler

Roosevelt Island House about to be built for Indonesian orphans of the December tsunami, and Island groups are staging a benefit concert to fund it.

The Residents Association, the PTA, and Manhattan Park are working together on the project. Roosevelt Island House will be part of a multi-house project in Sumatra that is to become home to four orphans of December's tsunami.

Several well-known entertainers, all Roosevelt Island residents, will perform March 19 at Manhattan Park Theater Club in a 7:30 concert. Tickets are $20 per person, $10 for seniors and disabled. They will be available in advance from members of the RIRA Common Council, or at the door, or by calling 212-828-2397.

Performers will include Tex Allen of Island House, one of Roosevelt Island's best-known musicians. Allen plays trumpet and piano and has been a regular fixture of the New York jazz scene for close to three decades. He presented Off the Hook, a tribute to Martin Luther King, on the Island in January.

Also performing will be Kay Story and Damon LaScot. Story, a violinist, pianist, and singer, has performed on Broadway in shows including Jekyll & Hyde and The Scarlet Pimpernel. She met LaScot, a guitarist, writer, and producer, while working as a singer on tour with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. Story has also performed at concerts to benefit causes such as breast cancer research and the Firefighters Relief Fund.

Janice Pendarvis and Mike Daly will sing, as well. Pendarvis, a Rivercross resident, has been seen on PBS and has also worked as a back up singer for Sting. Daly, a Language Arts and Social Studies teacher at PS/IS 217, is seen at the Sunday Night Spotlight Series at the Metropolitan Café in Manhattan. He plays guitar and performs folk, Irish, and original songs.

At the end of the evening, swing dancers will perform and give a short lesson to interested members of the audience.

Groundbreaking for Roosevelt Island House is set for March 20, the day after the benefit concert, according to Orphans International founder Jim Luce, an Eastwood resident. OI operations in Indonesia are headed by former Islander Dani Sirait. According to Luce, $2,330 has already been raised here on the Island toward the $16,000 needed for the project. Luce is hoping to get closer to the goal with the proceeds from the concert. He will fly to Indonesia the day after the concert to cut the red ribbon on Roosevelt Island House. He says, "I am enormously appreciative of all of my neighbors and all they have done to help."