Centre County bands join to ‘Rock the ’80s’ and support families affected by cancer

Perseverance can really pay off, just ask the Rock the ‘80s crew.

The annual fundraiser for the Bob Perks’ Cancer Assistance Fund is happening again Saturday from 7-9 p.m. and can viewed virtually on Facebook Live at www.facebook.com/BobPerksFund. Local Master of Ceremonies extraordinaire Jeff Brown will lead the way live and in person from Pine Grove Hall, where a small crowd will also be in attendance by reservation only.

“There will be limited seating at the Hall for people to watch it,” Pine Grove Hall owner Liz Grove said.

All in all, eight bands are featured in 17 pre-recorded videos, spanning a wide range of popular music — including some deep tracks — from a modern era of American music perhaps most closely associated with a feel-good vibe. That vibe was established by the development of numerous new musical genres, including new wave, dance-pop, thrash metal and, perhaps most notably, the most commercially successful genre of the era with bands like Poison, Cinderella, and Twisted Sister leading the way.

Due to this year’s format, there are some new as well as some familiar musicians and bands participating, such as Veleveeta, Frackwater Jack, Spider Kelley, and newcomer McFishmillan, a group that includes iconic bass player James Miller, Dave McKee, Mike Cullin and Steve Fishbain.

To pull together music videos featuring ‘80s music is particularly challenging, because so much of the era was defined by the shape-shifting video-production impact of MTV and then VH1. Unlike other events, the visual dynamics are perhaps equally as important as the audio dynamics, something the performs seem to have relished.

“It was super fun to be a part of,” Anchor and Arrow singer and Rock the ‘80s performer Jen Dashem wrote in an email, “and we really enjoyed the challenge of creating something virtually while still carrying through the vivid color and energy of the ‘80s.”

The Bob Perk’s Cancer Assistance Fund’s Rock the ‘80s concerts have been happening for nearly a decade and have raised over $100,000 for the families of those who have loved ones battling cancer, primarily in Blair, Centre, Clearfield and Huntington counties.

The Bob Perks Fund was established in 2006 in memory of Bob Perks, a State College native, who died in 2005 after a long battle with melanoma. Perks was only 42 years old when he died, leaving behind his wife Doreen and two young children. He was devoted to helping cancer patients long before facing his own health challenges.

He was a founding member of the local “Coaches vs. Cancer” and remained active until his own battle with cancer took his life.

Through the pandemic, the Bob Perks Fund was forced to cancel four major fundraising events, according to a press release. The dollars the Bob Perks Fund hopes to raise through this weekend’s Rock the ‘80’s donations are needed to support cancer patient applicants who do not have the resources to pay for rent, heat and other utilities, food, gas and more, while they are undergoing treatment.

For more information, visit http://www.bobperksfund.org/.