The Third Annual “Punks for a Princess” Benefit

In southern New England this Labor Day weekend, tons of bands will be rocking for a great cause, the third annual “Punks for a Princess” benefit. It has been held every September since 2008 in memory of 7-year-old Kaitlyn Ferra, who tragically passed away on August 7, 2008 after a flash flood in Ashland, New Hampshire claimed her life.

Several New England area bands banded together with Kaitlyn’s relatives and friends to help raise money for her family the following month. And the charity has gotten bigger every year since then, with a two-day event being held last September that raised nearly $3,500 for the Three Rivers WET team that successfully saved the lives of Kaitlyn’s mother and brother.

This year, it is a three-day weekend event (September 3-5), the biggest yet. Teaming with A Wish Come True, an organization that helps kids with life-threatening illnesses, PFAP aims to make 34 wishes come true at a cost of about $5,000 per wish, with all proceeds from the shows going to this cause.

Friday and Sunday, 21+ shows will be held at Club Hell in Providence, Rhode Island. Friday night’s show runs from 7:00pm-2:00am and will feature seven to eight New England area bands, including The McGunks, Subsystem and Yesterday’s Heroes, among others. Sunday’s show runs from 4:00pm-1:00am and stretches out to 11 bands, featuring acts from New England, New Jersey and New York, including Blanks 77, For What It’s Worth, and The Usual Suspects.

Saturday, there will be an all ages show from 3:00pm-7:00pm and a 21+ show from 8:00-1:00am at The Beachcomber in Quincy, MA. Tickets are just $10 for each day – one ticket gets you into both Beachcomber shows if you are over 21 years of age. Sweet deal: you only pay $7 for the Saturday and Sunday events if you present a ticket stub from the Friday show.

Some of the many bands scheduled for the Saturday shows include 8 Hr Waste, BarRoom Heroes, Echo The Silence, The Doll Eyes, Beantown Boozehounds, and a special acoustic performance by Lenny Lashley (of Darkbuster fame) on The Beachcomber deck in between sets during the all ages show.

There will be raffles held and barbeque food served all weekend long, a PFAP compilation for sale featuring tracks from all participants and other New England bands, as well as clothing and bumper stickers available to buy online. In other words, there’s plenty of reasons to check out this worthy benefit.

For more info on this annual benefit, visit punksforaprincess.com and their Facebook page.