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Mission/Vision | Board of Directors | Advisory Board | Staff | Stories | Phoenix History   The Phoenix is much more than a music hall or teen center; it’s had a major impact on the lives of many young people. Here are some of their stories:
The Phoenix provides a family that looks out for each other. When Joel Cox, an 18 year old who was very much a Phoenix kid, died of a sudden heart attack in Army boot camp, the Phoenix hosted his memorial service. It was attended by 300 young people, and was put on by his peers. Many kids spent all night painting tributes to Joel on the Phoenix walls while grieving together over his death, without the drugs, alcohol or isolation that might ordinarily have provided solace at a time like this.
Dear Board of Directors: Over the years my relationship to the Phoenix has taken on different forms. As a teen I was using the Phoenix as a safe place to hang out and find community. A band I was in at the time played there. As I reached 20 I began working for the Public Health department in Sonoma County as an outreach worker and health educator. The Phoenix was one of my primary centers to help bring relevant health messages to young people including coordinating on site free and anonymous HIV testing to teens. Later on I helped coordinate kayaking and camping trips for young people with Tom Gaffey and parents of Phoenix kids.  Shortly after my move to Sonoma County I became very involved in learning martial and healing arts. I received my massage therapy certificate in 97' and my black belt in ju-jitsu in 2001. Last year I began teaching martial arts, free of charge at the Phoenix Theater to young people there to increase self-esteem and as a deterrent to self- defeating behaviors. This free program became so popular that I created my own school, which I named Phoenix Ju-jitsu in honor of the Phoenix Theater, which inspired me to this service. This year I opened a massage therapy business down the street from the Phoenix and credit much of its recent success to Tom Gaffey and the support of the Phoenix. The bottom line is that when I moved to Sonoma County as a homeless teen, in 1996, I was a prime candidate to become addicted to drugs and vulnerable to many negative influences. Had I not had the support of the Phoenix Family and people like Tom Gaffey, I may not have made it through that time at all. It is with great pride and enthusiasm, as a successful adult who lives in Petaluma, that I support the Phoenix Theater as an essential institution in this community. Sincerely,
Letter from Harry Rosenblum, Phoenix alumni; stage lighting and design professional and instructor (Columbia University, NY) Dear Phoenix Board Of Directors, I first went to the Phoenix to see a production of Man of La Mancha that was put on by the Cinnabar Theater. I had no idea that the Phoenix was the venue and kind of place that it was until about a month later. Some of my new friends asked if I wanted to go see a show. I'd never been to see live music in that setting before, and was thrilled from the moment it started. I also realized what a special place the Phoenix was. There we were 400 excited teenagers, away from our parents sharing great music and having fun, in a SAFE environment. I felt welcomed immediately; nobody was judging anyone else, we were all there having a good time. I didn't learn until later that all of this was because of Tom Gaffey. For the next 3 years I spent almost every Friday and/or Saturday night at the Phoenix. It didn't really matter who was playing, I always knew I had a place to hang out, and for $5 I could see music, and be exposed to something other than MTV and Clear Channel.  Tom Gaffey was always at the door, greeting kids and talking to us, as peers, something very rare for the American teen. Tom always seemed there to help out or talk, if someone was having trouble at home, or needed money. Tom would often hire kids to work the door, or the concession stand. During the week Tom would let us rehearse our music at the Phoenix, either in the main space or in the basement. FREE rehearsal space is now something unimaginable to me living in NYC. To get to play your first show to a real crowd, on a real stage, and through a fantastic PA system is an incredible gift to all the young musicians that get their start at the Phoenix. The Phoenix is an amazing place. For many generations the Phoenix has been the cornerstone of music North of San Francisco. I now teach stage lighting and design at Columbia University and also work in Theater in New York City as a lighting designer and scenic designer. I got my start at the Phoenix. In 1993 I designed lights for the first time at the Phoenix for a production of Sweeney Todd. Tom Gaffey allowed me to design lights for some bands after that, and I was on my way. I didn't know then that I was embarking on a career path. There are many other memories of the Phoenix, too many to list. In 2002 I was on tour and was able to play the Phoenix once again for the first time since 1995. I was ecstatic to play again in the same room where I'd found music, and formed my early ideas of what community was about. I remain deeply grateful to the ways in which the Phoenix Theater changed the direction of my life. Sincerely, Harry Rosenblum
To Phoenix Board of Directors, I wish I could be there in person to express my gratitude to Tom and the Phoenix Theater. I know that I speak for many when I say that this extraordinary place is responsible for shaping some of the most brilliant, and artistic young minds that come out of the Bay Area. I moved to Petaluma the summer before my freshman year in high school. My father had died just a few years prior, so I was in a very low place. Now I was a new kid in town. Depressed anxious and scared, I set out to enjoy the one thing I new made me feel good; football! Somehow that sense of being part of something filled those holes I felt riddled with. After a few practices, I came to know a few young men, who without my knowing at the time, would become life long friends of mine. They worked at a local movie theater in town called the Phoenix. So after practices, I would go hang out in the lobby while they tended to the popcorn machine, and the junk food crazed moviegoers. Once the movie started, and the lobby emptied, we would just sit around and talk for hours. Sports, Music, girls we liked, who would probably never like us back! You know, your standard 13 year old banter. The more I would hang out, the more people I met, the more I started feeling like a normal kid again. We were from all walks of life, there were know social groups or clicks,
like in every other aspect of life. I have to say that Tom really created a place unlike no other. He gave us a place to be creative, and opened the doors to people who would appreciate it. What are your other options at 13 or 14? Watch TV, hang out on the streets? We had a huge house of our own that we felt safe in, and our parents knew right where we were. Takes all the mystery out of being a teenage rebel, but hey, you take what you can get at that age. Kids are going to do what ever it is they do. I know my mother felt pretty good knowing she could just call down to the Phoenix, and have Tom come get me if she needed me. She didn’t have to wander around the streets of Petaluma, or worry that I’m out at some strange party. Those years were amazing, and the friendships I made are still as close
of a bond as they were 15 years ago. It’s amazing to me that over the years the public still has its
doubts and concerns about the Phoenix kids. That’s right, our old home The Phoenix Theater. I look forward to the day when my Son says to me "Dad, I’m going down to the Phoenix." Best Regards, |