Phish raises millions of dollars to benefit Vermont-based addiction-recovery organization

The Burlington-born jam-rock group Phish raised more than $4 million last weekend at a trio of concerts to benefit the Vermont-based addiction-recovery organization founded by the band’s guitarist, Trey Anastasio.

The Oct. 25-27 concerts at the MVP Arena in Albany, New York raised money to kick off a $10 million fundraising campaign for the Divided Sky Residential Recovery Program in Ludlow. The money will help pay for capital improvements, property acquisition, staffing increases and a scholarship fund. Anastasio, who has been frank about his own experience with addiction, opened Divided Sky last year with co-founder Melanie Gulde.

“It’s hard to put into words how grateful we are to Phish and their fans for this generosity,” Gulde, who serves as Divided Sky’s program director, said in a news release announcing the fundraising result. “But this isn’t about words – it’s about action. And because of these concerts, we will be able to help many more people take charge of their lives and to recover from addictions.”

Money was raised at the concerts through ticket and merchandise sales and a pay-per-view livestream. According to the news release, 100% of net proceeds will support the Divided Sky Foundation.

The Divided Sky Residential Recovery Program focuses on helping people build life tools to maintain sobriety while staying active and involved in the outdoors and pursuing their personal passions, according to the news release. Nearly a dozen alumni who have completed the 30-day program were at the Albany concerts. More than 300 tickets were given to people who work in recovery or a related mental-health field.

This is the second straight year that the band that started at the University of Vermont in 1983 has raised money to benefit the state where Phish began. Last year, Phish played two benefit concerts at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center in New York that raised more than $3.5 million for flood-recovery efforts in Vermont and upstate New York, according to the news release.

Contact Brent Hallenbeck at bhallenbeck@freepressmedia.com.