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KTBA Donates Percussion Mallets to Elementary School

Percussion Mallets Donated to Elementary Students INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Thanks to your donations, Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation donated percussion mallets to the students at Avondale Meadows Academy in Indianapolis, IN. About the Students “The students I have the unique honor to teach are from very low socio-economic backgrounds,” states Mrs. Patterson, the music instructor at Avondale. “Our school is located in an urban setting and the majority of our students reside in and out of broken homes. They’re hardened by their level of adult-problem reality. The school is the students’ only structured environment. The Admin and Staff work effectively to make school their safe place to learn, grow, and have fun together.” Mrs. Patterson’s students love moving, playing, and creating music; “I’m their music teacher, and they need decent instruments and MALLETS to make it all happen, bringing smiles to their faces while mastering the concepts and skills of the state and national general music curriculum (the bonus),” she says. Their instruments are old and broken, and in meager supply. “Their smiles make my corner of the world a better place and my reason for being their teacher. Positive, fun music experiences, given their circumstances is a must, a need, and a want…hope…for the students’ sakes alone.” About the Project The project’s focus is teamwork, performing in one ensemble, and before the students had little to no opportunity such as this in their music classroom. Students will learn mallet-playing techniques, skills noticeably improving alongside their classmates. They’ll be playing, improvising, accompanying and creating their own music, which equals major smiles galore! Thanks to the donations from music lovers like YOU, KTBA was able to contribute to this project and send the mallets to the school promptly. About Us Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation is a 501c3 organization that makes a donation to a school in need of music instruments, supplies, sheet music, and more every week! Your donation helps us to keep music in schools, while preserving blues heritage. Without your support, we would not be able to reach as many students around the country. We are grateful for your generosity. If you would like to help us fund next week’s project, click here to make a donation! Under CAMPAIGN, select “General Support” shich funds the Music Education General Fund for our music projects. All donations are fully tax-deductible! Thank you for keeping music education in schools!

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KTBA Foundation Supports Music Learning Through Strumming

Elementary School Students Receive New Guitars for Music Program! MAXTON, NC – Thanks to the donations from supporters like you, Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation donated three (3) new guitars to the music students at J. W. Arnold Elementary School! About the Teacher and her Students “The students that I teach are eager to learn music,” say Ms. Saxton. “They are an awesome group of students who love learning about music. When the students come into the music room, they have so much excitement and joy for music that they always put a smile on my face. The students I teach go above and beyond the expectations that I set for them. The students I teach are always willing to help each other become the best music students. They love to come to music class because they will get a fun experience learning about music. The students I teach are so excited to learn that they always look forward to coming to music.” About the Project “If my students receive the guitars, they will be able to learn how to perform on instruments alone and with others in different varieties of music. Students need to be able to play by themselves and with others in order to see if they can understand what is being taught to them. They will also be able to understand timbre which is the sounds the guitar produces when it is being strummed.” Attitude of Gratitude Thanks to the support of music lovers and donors like you, Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation was able to fund Ms. Saxton’s project and the guitars are in good (little) hands! Ms. Saxton expresses her gratitude: Dear Keeping The Blues Alive Foundation, Inc., I would like to thank you for making a donation towards my project. Because of your generous donations, my students will have the opportunity to learn how to read music while also learning how to play the guitars. Again on behalf of myself and my students, we can’t thank you enough for donating to my my project. You are simply the best!! With gratitude, Ms. Saxton Support our Weekly Donation Program Every week, Keeping the Blues Alive makes a donation to schools in need of music instruments, supplies, sheet music, and more. Beginning as far back as 2015 (and pausing in 2020), we had been increasing the amount of weekly allocations. Now, we’re getting back on track with our weekly contributions but we do need help to keep this program afloat! So far, we have funded over 550 projects and we anticipate being able to hit 600 this year! BIG NUMBERS! If you enjoy seeing these weekly donations to classrooms across the country, please consider becoming a monthly donor to support this mission. Thank you for keeping music alive in schools! TO DONATE click here.

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KTBA Donates Bongos for “Invincible Warrior” Performance

Middle School Students in Montgomery Hit That Beat! MONTGOMERY, AL – Thanks to the donations from supporters like you, Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation donated brand new Aspire Oak Congos to the music students at McKee Middle School in Montgomery, Alabama! About the Students According to Mrs. Phillips, “the McKee Middle 6-8 band room is a safe place. It is almost separate from the school because it becomes a safe haven for its students to come and feel at home. We use music as a relationship builder in our band room. The students and parents look forward to entering our room to see what good it is we are coming up with at the time. Our program has been superior-rated for the last five years because we work hard and we stay focused on the task at hand.” That task is to excel, to compete, and ultimately WIN! “Once they enter my classroom they know it is a safe place but also a very serious place where we learn to be competitive and rise above the competition,” Mrs. Phillips says. Under her leadership, Mrs. Phillips has had students who have won the Alabama State Spelling Bee Competition, the state Hear Our Voices competition, multiple Beta Club competitions, and have been accepted to various District Honor Bands. About the Teacher and their School “Our band is a breath of fresh air to our school building,” she says. “Our school mainly focuses on athletics so we do our part to receive just as much publicity. We perform anywhere we get a chance.” Mrs. Phillips has been a fierce advocate for music education projects at her school and has been crowdfunding for at least the past 4 years. Nearly all students come from low-income households which makes this gift even more uplifting to those students and families. Approximately 95% of students receive free or reduced price lunches and the school receives significantly less state and local support than similar districts with less diverse student populations. About the Project Approximately 100 students will be affected by this project, placing it in the upper tiers of our impactful donations. The bongos will be used for the performance of The Invincible Warrior. “The Invincible Warrior is a piece we are playing for our Music Performance Assessment [or MPA’s],” Mrs. Phillips explains. “Full of energy and lively percussion, the students are excited to play it. We have all the parts covered except the Bongos. I have one scholar playing the part and the scholar has been practicing on drum pads until we get a set of Bongos. It is important that we have all the proper instruments for the pieces so the adjudicators can be impressed with our group. Superiors [top ratings/marks at MPA’s] are what we are seeking! Help us get them!” Attitude of Gratitude Thanks to the support of music lovers and donors like you, Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation was able to fund Mrs. Phillips’ project and the bongos were delivered to the school promptly! She expresses her gratitude: Dear Keeping The Blues Alive Foundation, Inc., Thank you for finding our project so quickly! We will have these in time for our assessments! We are so thankful for your generosity and thoughtfulness to our program. Our students have been practicing very hard and are very motivated to do a great job. McKee has not competed in many years so I am hoping to go and prove that we are a different band. Thank you!! With gratitude, Mrs. Phillips Affiliates In addition to KTBA funds, Mrs. Phillips also received additional support from the Central Alabama Community Foundation (CACF). For over 35 years, the Central Alabama Community Foundation has been a valued community partner and resource for nonprofits and students in the River Region and Wiregrass. Through the generous support of individual and corporate donors, the foundation provides over $5 million in grants and scholarships each year that meet diverse community needs, supporting programs and projects in education, human services, health, cultural arts and other civic concerns. Our mission is to create a better quality of life for those who live and work in the River Region. CACF serves several counties including Autauga, Coffee, Dale, Elmore, Geneva, Henry, Houston, Lowndes, Macon, and Montgomery. Click on the logos above for information about our affiliates in Autauga, Elmore and the Wiregrass Region. Support the Weekly Donation Program Every week, Keeping the Blues Alive makes a donation to schools in need of music instruments, supplies, sheet music, and more. Beginning as far back as 2015 (and pausing in 2020), we had been increasing the amount of weekly allocations. Now, we’re getting back on track with our weekly contributions but we do need help to keep this program afloat! If you enjoy seeing these weekly donations to classrooms across the country, please consider becoming a monthly donor to support this mission. Thank you for keeping music alive in schools! To donate click here.

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KTBA Foundation Donates New Violin to Wynnton Arts Academy

Bonamassa’s Nonprofit Donates to Wynnton Arts Academy COLUMBUS, GA – Thanks to your donations, students at the Wynnton Arts Academy are receiving another boost in their music department! You help them receive a new violin! About the School Wynnton Arts Academy is a public fine arts magnet school. All students receive daily instruction in drama, art, music, and dance. Arts integration and STEAM activities are integral components of their program. In addition, the activities support student achievement across the curriculum. Content and skills from the fine arts are integrated with core subject curriculum. As a result, it provides students additional avenues through which they can enhance their academic, emotional, physical, and social skills. The Arts promote self-discipline, creativity, and the confidence to succeed in life. Click here to watch Wynnton’s Welcome Video About the Project Mrs. Moody’s students needed a new, quality-made violin, that was the right size for beginning students. “My students are a very talented and diverse group who are energized by learning how to play their instruments,” she says. “I teach at a Title I school in Georgia where many students would like to be in the orchestra but cannot always afford to purchase an instrument. Being offered the opportunity to join an orchestra opens up so many doors for them.” Wynnton Arts Academy places the performing arts high on its priority list because of the positive impact they can have on students’ academic and social lives. “My students want to grow as musicians and attain a high level of performance,” she adds. “Many of them will go on to earn college scholarships.” Why Wynnton Academy? “Anyone that has ever been to an orchestra concert has surely been mesmerized by the violin section. The largest section of the orchestra, the violins often treat our ears to lush melodies impassioned with vibrato. The violin is also one of the most popular instruments with students. It all begins with fitting the student with the right sized instrument so they can be successful in their musical journey. Since our school starts violinists in 5th grade, many of them are not ready to start on a full-size violin. We need[ed] a quality 1/2 size violin so students aren’t struggling to learn on an instrument that is too big for them.” Thanks to music lovers like you, Keeping the Blues Alive was able to provide Mrs. Moody’s class with a brand new 1/2 size violin for their orchestra. Attitude of Gratitude Mrs. Moody expresses her sincere thanks to all those who contributed to the successful funding of this project: Dear Keeping The Blues Alive Foundation, Inc., I can’t fully express my joy, excitement, and thanks for your donation to my project. It is great to see that you share my vision for reaching children through music. For some students, orchestra is the reason they are excited to get up and come to school each morning. The violin that you have funded is a quality instrument that will be easy to tune and will produce a beautiful tone. In addition, this violin is the right size for young students. It will enable students to reach their potential and have the opportunity to perform with a group of their peers. I can’t wait for my students to be able to play on this instrument. Thank you again. I couldn’t do my job without support from donors like you! With gratitude, Mrs. Moody Let’s Keep it Going! Every week, KTBA donates to a school in need of music instruments, supplies, sheet music, and more. Please consider donating to this cause by clicking HERE. Thank you for keeping the blues alive! ___ Meet the Teacher Mrs. Gina Moody currently teaches Orchestra at Columbus High School and Wynnton Arts Academy. Mrs. Moody has served as the District 3 Orchestra Chair, District Honors Orchestra organizer, All State Orchestra auditions organizer, and as a mentor to new orchestra teachers. Prior to teaching in Muscogee County, she held the 2nd clarinet position in the Midland-Odessa Symphony in Midland, Texas. In addition, she maintained a private teaching studio. Mrs. Moody received degrees in Clarinet Performance from the University of North Texas and Music Education from Columbus State University. Mrs. Moody balances her teaching duties while remaining an active performer. She performs with several local groups. As a member of those various groups, Mrs. Moody has been invited to perform at GMEA, ClarinetFest, and the Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic.

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