THE PATRIOT LEDGER – Members of the South Shore arts community will be sharing the stage at Plymouth Memorial Hall to raise money for Project Arts founder Mike Landers as he continues to recover from a stroke.
The benefit show, “A Night for Mike,” is scheduled for 6 to 11 p.m. March 31 at Plymouth Memorial Hall, 83 Court St. Popular Plymouth comedian Christine Hurley will host. There will be live music, hors d’oeuvres, a cash bar, auctions and chances to win prizes. More than $50,000 has already been raised on a GoFundMe online campaign.
Mike Landers, founder of Project Arts, is a longtime Plymouth resident. Founded in 1995, Project Arts of Plymouth is a nonprofit organization with a mission to promote local arts and entertainment. Landers and his team have produced free summer concerts and festivals, including the Bass & Blues Harborfest and the Plymouth Harbor Folk Festival.
Landers, known in the local arts community as “Mayor Mike,” suffered a stroke four months ago while writing a grant application for Project Arts. The stroke left him paralyzed on his right side. He was unable to speak, swallow or walk. After a long stay in a Boston hospital, Landers was transferred to a long-term rehabilitation facility to continue months of physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech pathology.
Landers and his wife, Cindy, are longtime residents of Plymouth, where they raised four children. The couple also have 10 grandchildren. Long before he started Project Arts, Landers was a teenage bass player in the band Sabinpine, and booked gigs to open for music legends such as B.B. King, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry and Steely Dan.
For more than 47 years, Landers has volunteered and produced events for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, raising thousands of dollars for the organization.
His community service doesn’t stop there.
Landers has served on the Plymouth Area Chamber of Commerce’s Industrial Development, Tourism and Plymouth Summer Festival committees, and has served on the Summer Street Skate Park Committee and the Plymouth Cultural Council. He is a longtime town meeting member. He recently retired from Plymouth Municipal Airport, where he worked in operations.
Tickets to “A Night for Mike” cost $30 or $500 for a table of 10. They are available at tickets.plymouthphil.org, a service donated by Plymouth Philharmonic Orchestra. Free parking is available in Memorial Hall’s lot.
To learn more about Project Arts Plymouth, or to make a donation, go to projectarts.com.
