our story
Preserving Hometown Experiences Music Fund was founded in late 2020 with a mission to support musicians and music-related initiatives for the public interest of sustaining local music. We believe that the strength and diversity of local music directly impacts the overall wellness of the community. We also recognize that musicians face a variety of challenges that can jeopardize their ability to provide music to the community including a lack of accessibility to music resources, music-related education, or support during a personal crisis.
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We are a dedicated group of people with a broad set of skills and talent who have undertaken the challenge to build an organization that will provide substantial long-term benefits to our community. As a young organization, we are building the foundation to deliver our mission, and with the support of our community through financial and volunteer assistance, we will be recognized as a model for charitable music growth and sustainability.
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Our goal is simple: Remove barriers that prevent a musician from playing music or growing their musical career by providing the right resources at the right time.
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our leadership
Rob Adams
executive director
Rob has a diverse background both in business and in music. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering and a Master’s Degree in Marketing and Finance. Program and Project Management leadership has been a central focus of his career along with serving various elected positions in non-profits. Rob is a member of a local band and as such is highly in tune with the music industry. 30 years in Phoenix has allowed Rob to become connected to and an advocate for other local musicians.
Joe Dauer, CPA
DIRECTOR OF FINANCE
Joe is a business executive in the technology and finance sector. He has served as a leader in several non-profit organizations offering experience, vision, and a pragmatic approach to make a positive impact on others. He is a lifelong musician, and his love of music has been the inspiration for many of his small and large scale art installations. Joe has spent decades actively serving his community through special projects and programs, and now focuses that experience to serve local musicians and music-related initiatives.
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MARIANNE SWORD
DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY impact
Marianne enjoys a career in Pediatric Occupational Therapy and is a Small Business Owner. All her life efforts have focused on philanthropy and public service. Through countless hours of volunteerism, fundraising and giving she’s made it a priority to turn her passions into action. At the core of Marianne’s passion is her love of music and she has made it her mission to make a positive impact on the local music community.
CHARLENE HUNSAKER
DIRECTOR OF VOLUNTEER ENGAGEMENT
Charlene has led a life of service to others. In both her professional life as well as through volunteerism she has focused on lifting others up through wellness and through connecting vulnerable populations with needed care and services. For over 30 years Charlene has been active in her Phoenix area community and helped to grow the live music movement into a thriving scene of talented musicians.
Jeff Grant
DIRECTOR
Jeff is a former Independent Commodities trader from Chicago. Business entrepreneur in AZ in the Golf and Insurance industries. He is founding board member of The Alex Maxwell Grant Foundation that helped NYC inner city youth with music programs education and provided them with instruments and a safe place to learn. Jeff is also a musician in a local band an is very involved in the Arizona music community.
our founders
Larry Cummings
DIRECTOR
Hi, I'm Larry, and I’m a music fan. I work with non-profits in my spare time. I work as a collaboration tools consultant by day, and I have a lot of experience in product development for services based products. You can read more about that on LinkedIn. I have always been amazed and impressed by the quiet awesomeness of the Phoenix Metro area music scene. I go to shows as often as I can but not nearly as often as I used to. I’m honored to help PHX Music Fund as it’s incredibly important to support local bands and the local music ecosystem.