All the News on Music4Life

With the delivery this morning (August 30th) of four musical instruments:

  1. a French horn to Shoreline Public Schools and
  2. two violins and a French horn to Everett Public Schools

Music4Life™ has delivered 286 ready-to-play instruments since Sept. 1, 2016 to our participating schools/school districts and very nearly doubled its productivity from last year (2015-2016).

When asked how that can happen, all we can say is:

  1. We benefited from new ads that began appearing in Encore Media Group publications (Seattle Symphony, Seattle Opera, Pacific NW Ballet and about a dozen others) starting February
  2. We added a new program, Everett Public Schools, that has a very active Booster Club and received at least 90 of those 286 instruments
  3. We benefited from some management changes that clarified and simplified our processes

Music4Life is starting a new program to provide donated and repaired musical instruments to students attending Everett Public Schools. The announcement comes from Dr. Gary Cohn, Everett Superintendent, and David Endicott, President/COO of Music4Life.

“We’re delighted to launch this new partnership with Music4Life for our kids in the Everett Public Schools,” Superintendent Cohn says. “As we re-establish strings at our elementary schools and a full orchestra program in the district, and we continue to seek ways to make our remarkable band programs accessible to children whose families cannot afford instruments, Music4Life comes to our aid. The Music4Life folks will make it possible for many more of our students to gain the thrill of fully participating in a band or orchestra without worrying about where they will get an instrument. Bravo to David Endicott and the Music4Life team!”

Music4Life™ helped 143 students in need with the delivery of donated and repaired musical instruments across our five-school district-based programs during the 2015-16 school year. The instruments had an estimated retail value of $102,323. Each instrument has an expected life of five to ten years, so other students will benefit in future years, as well.

This 3/4 double-bass was presented in September to Edmonds Public Schools. The hard-to-find instrument was donated by Kathy Bloomerand her husband Ed Weinberger as they were downsizing from their Wedgewood-area home. Kathy said to use the instrument wherever we wanted. It’s an example of how Music4Life™ brings added value to schools and school districts by providing instruments they never would have found. Shown with the double-bass is Dave Wilson, Co-Owner of Hammond Ashley Violins in Issaquah, who did the work on the instrument.

The seventh annual “Poverty Bay Blues & Brews Festival” was a sunny success this year with gross receipts of $65,000. Produced by the Rotary Club of Des Moines/Normandy Park, the event is expected to produce $15,000 for the Music4Life™ program supporting Highline Public Schools.

Music4Life™ is on the lookout for a Baby Grand piano for Superintendent Gary Cohn of Everett Public Schools. “We’ll put it to good use,” Dr. Cohn says. Please let us know if you know someone willing to donate a Baby Grand by calling 206-409-3275.

This is one of four Tang (Chinese) drums donated to Music4Life™ by the coffee giant Starbucks. We’re looking for a school that has a special appreciation for Chinese music and can use four original Chinese-made Tang drums.