BRUNSWICK

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Brunswick will welcome The State Street Traditional Jazz Band out of Portland this Saturday, Sept. 24 as the church continues its Concerts for a Cause series. The series raises money for the church, as well as for local charities and non-profits.

The idea for the concert series came to fruition after a fire destroyed much of the church in 2011. Repairs were costly, so for the past two years, concert committee chairwoman Susan Michaud has headed up Concerts for a Cause to help raise funds and give back to a community that has given so much to them over the years.

“We had all of these visioning sessions for what we wanted to do after the church burned down,” said Michaud. “We all thought concerts would be great for the community and for not only raising money for the church, but raising money for charities.”

The UUCB assesses the money they’ve raised at the end of the year, and whatever they have leftover after their quota goes to local charities who are handpicked by the church. Some of the charities and non-profits who have received money from the concerts include Tedford Housing, Midcoast Hunger’s backpack project, The Gathering Place, Maine Boys to Men, and Habitat for Humanities weatherization project at their 7 Rivers Maine location.

“If we only make $100, we can’t choose as many charities to donate to,” said Michaud. “But we always hope to make more than that. Most of the time we see a good return, but it depends on the ticket prices.”

Music is a great way to raise money, along with raising awareness for local causes, Michaud said.

“We had had a few concerts here before we started the cause,” said Michaud, stressing familiarity with local musicians as the main factor for starting Concerts for a Cause. “One of our first Concerts for a Cause was Gordon Bok, and that was very successful. Daponte String Quartet loved our venue so much that they are now doing all of their area concerts at UUCB. We have done a lot of acoustic music the past two years, but we like to have a wide variety of music.”

With jazz seeming like a natural avenue to explore, a committee member recommended Portland’s State Street Traditional Jazz Band as the next feature performer in the series. The band’s leading trumpet player and founder, John Page, honed his jazz chops in 1960’s the French Quarter of New Orleans, and formed SSTJB in 1989. Since then they have enjoyed a wealth of success close to home and far away.

“People from all walks of life and every age group across the state, the country and abroad attest to the joyful sound of this band,” said Michaud.

SSTJB has played various jazz festivals and other concerts, but an opportunity to see them in an intimate setting like UUCB is rare, Michaud said.

“Original New Orleans music as celebrated by State Street Traditional Jazz Band is not that common,” said Michaud.

The band is comprised entirely of Maine musicians, including Page on trumpet, Peter Dunphy on banjo, Doug Protsik on piano, Bill Thurston on drums, Pat Whitaker on tuba, Barry Daniels on clarinet, and Barney Balch on trombone.

Upcoming shows in the series include Emma’s Revolution on Oct. 22 and David Mallet on Jan. 28.

Saturday’s show begins at 7:30 p.m. Admission is $12 in advance and $15 at the door. Tickets can be purchased at the UUCB office or online at statestreet.brownpapertickets.com. To learn more about the band, visit statestreettraditionaljazzband.com.

bgoodridge@timesrecord.com