Vocalists Give Back: A Benefit for Everette DeVan, at the Phoenix

No one in Kansas City’s jazz scene has mentored more female singers than organist Everette DeVan. That legacy made the series of strokes that DeVan suffered in February all the more harrowing, and now DeVan’s wife has announced that the local legend is battling kidney failure. To help raise money for mounting medical bills, some of DeVan’s former students are coming together for a benefit. On Monday at the Phoenix, Millie Edwards and Tom DeMasters are joined by singers Eboni Fondren, Lori Tucker, Linnaia McKenzie and other disciples of DeVan’s. A $10 donation at the door, plus prizes and a raffle, all benefit the organ master who has contributed so much to Kansas City’s jazz scene for more than 40 years.