Songs for Our Sister fund-raiser concert features seven students

The annual Songs for Our Sister concert is Oct. 27 inside the Toledo School for the Arts Black Box Theater.

The concert is a fund-raiser for the Mary Ann Russo jazz scholarship provided by the school. Ms. Russo was a beloved jazz singer from Sylvania who died of lung cancer in 2008.

This year’s event features seven students who have been working with another notable jazz singer from the Toledo area, Lori LeFevre. They are to be joined on stage with Ramona Collins, Kim Buehler, Jeff Halsey, Scott Kretzer, Cliff Monear, and Ms. Russo’s daughter, Lisa Young.

The 3 p.m. event will have a Halloween theme, with a costume contest and a 50/50 raffle. Tickets are $25. They can be purchased online at www.ts4arts.org . Admission includes a pre-show reception beginning at 2 p.m.

Ms. Russo sang with many area jazz and big band groups and performed through nearly every decade of her life, starting at age 6 when she became a regular on WSPD-AM’s Kiddies Karnival program.

She was often heard in the lounges of old downtown Toledo hotels, such as the Hillcrest and the Commodore Perry, and clubs including Rusty’s Jazz Cafe and Murphy’s Place.

Ms. Russo, who died at age 75, helped found the Toledo Jazz Society in 1980 and in 1989 was elected the first female president of the Toledo Federation of Musicians. Her work with big bands included seven years with the Johnny Knorr Orchestra.

She grew up in East Toledo and graduated in 1950 from Central Catholic High School.