Thursday, July 31st, 2008  9 p.m.
  The Nuyorican Poet's Cafe
  236 E. 3rd St. btwn Aves. B & C
  New York, NY

  Benefit Concert for Alfie Alvarado on the Lower East Side, The Nuyorican Poet's Café.

  La Familia Sextet, Ralph Irrizarry and many other surprise musicians will dedicate an evening to a dear friend of Latin musicians everywhere: Alfie. A videographer and chronicler who has documented some of the most important moments in Latin Jazz and its musicians with a singular passion, Alfie Alvarado has been a longtime fixture in Latin Jazz circles for almost twenty years.

  Back on April 18th, 2008, the same week she documented Rhythm Relief, the Benefit concert for percussionist Norman Hedman at the Jazz Standard, Alfie's only son, James Alexander, was found unconscious on a street in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.  James has been in a coma since being found and has been recently admitted to a long-term facility in Queens.

  Because James is twenty-nine years old and was not making much money at the time of his hospitalization, Medicaid is covering the cost of his care. That brings us to our dedication. Anyone who knows Alfie knows that the only thing more important to her than James is music. Alfie has been working on archaic equipment and software for a long time, and those of us who know and care about her would like to do something to change that. Especially now that her passion for videography is the one thing that helps to keep her sane as she passes each day in hopes that they'll both wake up from this nightmare.

  In addition to La Familia Sextet, a second set of music is being planned that will be headed up by Ralph Irizarry and that will feature some of Alfie's closest musical friends. This will surely be a night to remember! Please come and support our friend and help music make a difference in someone's life.

  The Nuyorican Poet's Café is located at 236 East 3rd Street between Avenues B & C. All monies collected will go directly to Alfie.

  Admission:  $7

  Band begins 9 p.m.

  For those outside of New York who would like to make a donation, please send checks to:

  Alfie Alvarado
  728 Fifth Avenue #B1
  Brooklyn, NY  11232-4421