PRESS RELEASE

May 24, 2006
Contact: Shepley Metcalf
(617)892-9174

Mai Cramer Memorial Real Blues Festival Raises the Roof and Funds for Pine Street

BOSTON--A recent sold-out concert held in memory of Mai Cramer, host for 24 years of WGBH's Blues After Hours program, raised over $5,000 for Pine Street Inn, New England's leading resource for homeless men and women. Close to 500 blues and Cramer fans packed Arlington's Regent Theatre for the April 18th concert.
Organized by Cramer's widower, guitarist Peter Ward, the Mai Cramer Memorial Real Blues Festival featured a fantastic line-up of performers: Ronnie Earl & the Broadcasters, Sugar Ray & the Bluetones, pianist David Maxwell, blues songstress Michelle Willson, and 2120 South Michigan Avenue. At the show's close, Weepin' Willie Robinson, Boston's elder statesman of the blues, delighted the house by unexpectedly joining those on stage to perform some of his favorite tunes.
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During the concert, Ward thanked Harpoon Brewery for its donation of ale and the University Wine Shop of Cambridge for its donation of wine, and also the many area merchants who donated items for the silent auction. Including checks made payable directly to Pine Street Inn, the concert raised $5,335.52.
Pine Street Inn offers homeless guests refuge, respect and the tools needed to reconnect with work, community and housing. Along with street outreach, shelter, and job training, the inn also provides permanent housing with on-site support staff for over 300 men and women.
Cramer died of breast cancer in 2002. Pine Street Inn was one of her favorite charities. Ward hopes to stage a second annual benefit in April 2007. For more information about the Festival, please contact Ward at 781-665-3622.