His guitar weeps for mom who had ALS

An unexpected flash of creativity came during a sleepless night.

Peter Gusmano was staring out a window, into his backyard in Merrick, feeling helpless and angry. His mother was slipping away, losing her ability to speak or move her arms and legs. She'd been diagnosed with ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease, and was refusing treatment.

"So many emotions are coursing through your mind when you watch someone you love go through this," said Gusmano, 41. "You're thinking about what's going to happen in the future, memories of the past, and at the same time, you are angry and grappling with what is happening right now."

That sleepless night, Gusmano sat down with his guitar, gathering his feelings. He wrote the first bars of what would become an album of instrumental guitar music.

The 13-track CD, titled "A Flickering Light," benefits Project ALS, a national group that funds research and treatment for the uncurable disease.

The rock album and Gusmano's own grassroots nonprofit -- Guitar for a Cure -- have raised about $20,000 so far, he said.

"Peter's efforts are incredibly generous and will ultimately change the course of the disease toward treatments and a cure," said Meredith Estess, president of Project ALS.

A Manhattan advertising executive, Gusmano knows how to get the word out. He raises awareness of ALS through his website, local concerts and fundraisers.

Each song on the CD released last year expresses a deeply personal moment or memory Gusmano shared with his mother, he said. The first track, "Sight into Soul," even samples a familiar childhood tune: an ice cream truck's tune.

"My mother was always the mom who had the kids over at the house. She took care of everyone and always made sure my friends I were safe and had a good upbringing," said Gusmano, who grew up in Oceanside.

Lillian Gusmano was 72 when she died, about 18 months after being diagnosed with ALS in 2004. She loved art, films and music, her son said, and supported Gusmano's passion for the drums as a youngster and his later embrace of the guitar.

The most devastating part of the disease, Gusmano said, was that his mother was mentally sharp but couldn't move, speak or swallow.

"But somehow, even without speaking," said Lorna, Gusmano's wife, "we talked so much."

ALS FUNDRAISER

Peter Gusmano and his band will perform songs from "A Flickering Light" Friday at KJ Farrell's Bar and Grill, 242 Pettit Ave., Bellmore. Cover charge is $10; copies of the CD will be available to buy. For more information, visit guitarforacure.com.