We join friends and family in mourning the loss of Christopher John Burnside, known on “PT” (phantasytour.com) as “cburnside”, who passed away unexpectedly December 31st, 2010. The Chronicle-Telegraph (Elyria, OH) provided this obituary:
Christopher John Burnside, 30, of Grafton, passed away unexpectedly Tuesday, December 28, 2010. He was born July 6, 1980 in Elyria.
Christopher worked as a restaurant server, and attended The University of Toledo. He was a 1998 Midview High School graduate, and had earned an Associate degree in Psychology from L.C.C.C. Christopher treasured spending time with his family. He enjoyed writing, music and was gifted with the ability to talk to people.
Survivors include his parents, John Steven and Connie Ann (nee Young) Burnside of Grafton; a sister, Stephanie A. Burnside of Elyria; and his girlfriend, Nicole Slavik. He is also survived by numerous aunts, uncles and cousins. Christopher was preceded in death by his grandparents, Dewey and Pauline (nee Helmick) Burnside and Tom and Penny (nee Griffith) Young.
Friends may call Sunday, January 2, 2011, from 1 to 4 P.M., at The Laubenthal Mercado Funeral Home, 38475 Chestnut Ridge Rd. (at State Rt. 57), Elyria (440) 322-4626, where funeral services will be at 10 A.M., Monday, January 3, 2011. The Reverend Rick Stein, of First United Presbyterian Church in Elyria, will officiate. Burial will be at Resthaven Memory Gardens in Avon.
Memorial contributions, in Christopher’s memory, can be sent to The Elyria Public Library, 1194 West River Rd., Elyria, OH 44035.
Online condolences can be left for the family atlaubenthalmercadofuneralhome.com
The Mockingbird Foundation has received a generous contribution of $1,000 from PhantasyTour, to support ongoing efforts in music education for children.
Whether you're still doing Christmas shopping, or making other purchases, anytime you shop at Amazon and start here, a percentage of your purchase is donated to the Mockingbird Foundation – up to 15%, on anything you buy!
This isn’t chump change: One fan bought his HDTV via the affiliate link, and the Mockingbird Foundation received $200! Support music education for children, via the non-profit, fan-founded, fan-managed, all-volunteer Mockingbird Foundation, and start shopping here!
Lawn Boys – A Tribute to Phish will perform this Saturday, December 18th, to benefit the Mockingbird Foundation. Lawn Boys will play two full sets of Phish classics, with a full light show, at The Luca Lounge, 222 Avenue B (b/w 13th and 14th), New York, NY. Tickets $10, and 50% of the door goes to Mockingbird, to support music education for children.
UPDATE: Due to a massive power outage last night at Luca Lounge, the show has been moved to Fontana's Bar, 105 Eldridge Street, New York, NY 10002-4482, (212) 334-6740. Enjoy the show!!
The Mockingbird Foundation, an all-volunteer nonprofit organization founded by Phish fans, has made unsolicited donations to four nonprofit music and arts programs in Worcester, Massachusetts; New York, New York; and Burlington, Vermont. The donations were made in anticipation of Phish’s five-show “New Year’s Run,” which begins with two shows at the DCU Center on December 27 and 28 in Worcester, MA, followed by three sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden in New York city on December 30 and 31, and January 1.
A donation of $1000 was made to The Joy of Music Program in Worcester, MA, which strives to “giv[e] children a joyful and solid foundation for life-long musical growth.” Donations of $500 apiece were made to two organizations in New York that are previous grant recipients of The Mockingbird Foundation’s highly competitive grant application process: the Harbor Conservatory for the Performing Arts, which teaches music, dance and acting classes to children in Harlem, Brooklyn, Manhattan, the Bronx and elsewhere; and the Willie Mae Rock Camp for Girls, whose mission is to “empower[] girls and women through music education, volunteerism, and activities that foster self-respect, leadership skills, creativity, critical thinking, and collaboration.” In addition, a donation of $1000 was made to the Seven Below Arts Initiative, founded by Phish’s guitarist Trey Anastasio “to foster artistic development and to support arts education in the state of Vermont.” This donation by the Foundation is in honor and in memory of Trey Anastasio’s sister, Kristy Manning, who helped found and lead the Seven Below Arts Initiative.
The Mockingbird Foundation, run entirely by volunteers, donates to music education programs in communities touched by Phish tours in order to inspire support for music and arts education and to generate positive press coverage. Music and arts programs positively impact the lives of children and all of us, and it was in this spirit that the Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit, was organized by Phish fans in 1996. To date, the Foundation has distributed approximately $619,000 in 42 states.
The Foundation is also the leading provider of historical information about Phish and its music, having cultivated intellectual property through www.phish.net since 1994. The Foundation is able to disburse more than 98% of the funds raised to important and innovative programs serving diverse populations. Due to high demand, the Foundation’s two-tiered application process remains one of the most competitive in the nation. Please consider making a fully tax-deductible donation through the Foundation’s website at www.mbird.org.
Phish is a rock band that started in 1983 and grew to become one of the highest-grossing live acts in the nation. For more information about Phish, please visit phish.net and phish.com.
2010 has been a great year for the Mockingbird Foundation, and we’re already looking ahead to news in the next month, and next year, that will excite you. Meanwhile, we want to thank all those who’ve worked with us as partners – producing and distributing content, handling distribution for various Foundation products, and helping us raise funds for music education for children. If you’d like to partner with the Foundation in any way – whether for a one-off event, or a long-term strategic partnership – we’re always happy to hear ideas, and to know of your interest.
The Mockingbird Foundation, its board members, and the various working groups join friends and family in celebrating the life and mourning the sudden passing of long-time fan and online friend Julia McAllister.
Julia succumbed to complications related to epilepsy, unexpectedly but peacefully, in her sleep on Wednesday, November 24, 2010, at age 38.
She passed at the side of her devoted fiancé Brian Sherman, to whom she was scheduled to be married this Christmas, followed by a New York City honeymoon.
As someone posted on her Facebook page, “With the wave of her sparkly pink wand she is gone to a place where Phish always plays, the sandwiches are fresh, the flamingos flock, the grammar is correct, the spelling is perfect and the ice cube caddy is full.”
Julia is
also remembered in recent threads on the Vibes Forum (“We’ve lost a ray of sunshine”) and Jambands.ca (“Rest in Peace, Patchoulia”), and will long be remembered through her blog and other online venues.
From her obituary…
Future daughter-in-law to Heather and David Sherman, who will cherish the
time they had with Julia. To be lovingly remembered and deeply missed by her family – father Thomas McCourt and wife Karen, sisters, Lisa Harber (Shawn), Megan McCourt and brother Tommy McCourt. Aunt to Brodie and Marleah. Predeceased by her Dad William McAllister who raised Julia with unconditional love and support. Survived by Dixie Robinson whom Julia called Mom. Remembered by countless friends, many referred to as family – especially her best friend and sister
Gill – and all of her colleagues at Rogers Communications.
Friends may call at the Turner & Porter Yorke Chapel, 2357 Bloor St. W., Toronto, atWindermere, east of the Jane subway, on Tuesday from 2-4 & 6-9 p.m. Funeral Service will be held in the Chapel on Wednesday December 1, 2010 at 3 p.m. If desired, remembrances may be made to Epilepsy Canada or The Mockingbird Foundation.
There will also be a memorial gathering in Glen Falls, NY, on December 11th.
Sharin’ in the Groove: Celebrating the Music of Phish continues to sell well more than a decade after its release. Recently listed in Home Grown Music Network‘s “Top 100 Sellers of the Decade”, Sharin‘ is now available via digital download from more than fifty suppliers. Every track you purchase helps support music education for children.
To celebrate Phish having covered Little Feat’s Waiting for Columbus in its entirety on 10/31/10, the Mockingird Foundation is offering a free download of Little Feat’s cover of Phish’s “Sample in a Jar“. Recorded for the Foundation’s double-disc tribute album Sharin’ in the Groove, this track has helped raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for music education for children.
We welcome you to download the other 19 tracks, or the entire two-disc collection, including Dave Matthews, Arlo Guthrie, the Wailers, Jimmy Buffet, Tom Tom Club, Son Seals, Lake Trout, the Stanford Marching Band, and more, available from more than sixty distributors, including iTunes, MSN, Napster, Rhapsody, Liquid, MusicNet, MusicNow, MIH, GIM, Bitmunk, PassAlong, PayPlay, Tradebit, and Muze
Every purchase helps support great programs, such as the Atlantic City High School, which received $1,000 just last week.
The Press of Atlantic City wrote an article about the Foundation’s recent tour grant to ACHS, though mis-attributed it to the band rather than our fan-managed effort:
Rock group Phish donates $1,000 to music program at ACHS
Posted: Friday, October 29, 2010 10:30 pm | Updated: 6:24 pm, Tue Nov 2, 2010.
The Mockingbird Foundation, a nonprofit group organized by fans of the band Phish, announced Friday that it has donated $1,000 toward music education programs at Atlantic City High School.
The group wrote in a statement that a check was sent to the school as part of an effort by fans to support communities touched by Phish tours and to encourage support for music education. Phish is performing this weekend at Boardwalk Hall. Additional funds also will be raised during the Phamily Poker Classic charity tournament this weekend at Tropicana Casino and Resort.
The Mockingbird Foundation has donated $616,000 to organizations in 42 states since its founding in 1996, the group’s website states.
“The Foundation is pleased to support Atlantic City High School’s music department and hopes to inspire others to support it and the students at ACHS as well,” Mockingbird board member and tournament co-organizer Charlie Dirksen said in a statement.
