Paul Penta needs your help!

Perhaps you met Paul Penta when he was entertaining on the American Queen or another steamboat. Maybe he served with you in the Massachusetts Air National Guard 102nd Fighter Wing. You might have gone to St. Dominic Savio High School (Class of 1966) with him in East Boston. If so, you know that Paul is a stand-up guy, the kind who has your back. If he sees you in the audience, he’ll play your favorite song. And if you were in need, he would take the shirt off his back to help you.

Paul has some serious health issues that have meant he’s found himself in long-term care. He’s always been able to supplement his income with gigs, so he needs your help. He won’t be able to meet some expenses, like his condo fees. At this point, we’re not even sure what else looms out there for Paul, and what other expenses might need to be paid. His daughter, Michelle, lives in South Carolina, a long trip away from Paul’s home in Naples, Florida, and her own tight finances mean that visiting is hard. This fund would help her visit.

Paul grew up in East Boston. He began performing professionally as a singer and guitarist when he was a teenager and has been a member of the American Federation of Musicians Local 9-535 for more than fifty years. He attended U.Mass Boston. He is a huge fan of most things Boston, including the Red Sox and the Patriots. He has entertained solo and with bands on Cape Cod, Key West, and many other far-flung places. He worked on a number of boats plying the waterways of America, for a number of different companies: Great American Steamboat Company, America West Steamboat Company, and American Queen Voyages. A man of many talents, Paul has also done a good deal of work as a defense contractor testing weapons for the U.S. Air Force.

Can you help Paul? You know he’d help you. Even if it’s just a little, it will make a difference.