065 Bob Tigert—Ukulele Kids Club
Kids in Hospitals, Music, the Real Deal—What’s Not to Like?
Bob Tigert just "sorta fell into" his volunteer position on the board of the Ukulele Kids Club. "When they asked me, I had never heard of it. 'What is that?' I had to ask." A ukulele (and guitar and bass) player, Bob quickly decided the organization was the "real deal"—grassroots, amazingly noble, and very effective in the execution of its mission, which is two-fold:
Less than five years old, UKC has already changed the lives of nearly 5,000 children in close to 200 hospitals in multiple states and now Canada simply by providing music therapists this simple instrument. The ukulele allows them to teach the children how to make music while confined to their hospital bed. Small enough to be easily held, ukuleles are super easy to learn to play. With the help of the therapist, patients quickly begin playing tunes and singing. They have something creative, uplifting, and fun to focus on instead of what is wrong and hurting. Music becomes part of their healing.
Volunteers do not go to the hospitals to help the children directly. That is the role of the professional music therapists. Volunteers put their efforts into raising the funds to buy the ukuleles that the therapists will use with the child and then leave for the child to continue to play at home. Purchased through a special arrangement with an instrument-making company, each ukulele costs only $40.
Volunteers get to use their creativity too in raising funds. Often the event is a concert by musicians—a natural fit. But in New Orleans, the tattoo parlors each take a ukulele and paint it with their special artistry and then sell the "tattooed" ukes online, last year raising $15,000. Volunteers use whatever skills they bring in support of the fundraising efforts. Bob's career had been as a videographer. He has put his skill back to work to tell the story of the Ukulele Kids Club. You can see his video on the website.
Unlike Bob, you as a volunteer don't have to play a ukulele. But like Bob, you simply need to care about kids in hospitals, recognize the power of music to bring healing, and value being part of a real-deal organization that is definitely changing lives.
To learn more about Ukulele Kids Club, to see Bob’s video, or to donate, visit theukc.org.
065B Sheri Kimble—Violins of Hope
Music From a Dark Past—Hope for Today and Tomorrow
The lilt of beautiful music stirs hope in the hearts of listeners. But like any great gift it can be perverted for evil. The Violins of Hope experience tells the story and brings it full circle through the darkest of times and circumstances to hope again. Sheri Kimble, a volunteer docent, explains:
During the Nazi years, many Jewish and other musicians were forced to play their music at first for the entertainment of the Nazi officials, but then for the prisoners being marched off to the labor sites from the camps, and ultimately for the new arrivals at the death camps who were herded into the "showers." Even though they knew the outcome, the musicians had no choice but to play or they too would die. Sometimes they would receive an extra scrap of food for their playing. Having that could give them—and others with whom they shared—strength and hope to stay alive another day.
When the light began to return, the now freed musicians no longer had the heart to play. Their violins languished in dark attics and closets. Eventually, one—and then one by one—others were given to or collected by an Israeli luthier, Amnon Weinstein. His father, Moshe, had also been a maker and repairer of stringed instruments, which had brought him to Palestine before the outbreak of war. Unfortunately, 400 of his and his wife's families were destroyed in the Holocaust. In 2000 Amnon turned his skills toward restoring the violins and finding ways to tell their stories—so that the remembering will help humanity say, "Never again!"
The Violins of Hope experience travels internationally, but includes extended time in communities that are willing to turn the "visit" into a community-wide discussion and learning opportunity. Previous stops have been in Cleveland and Cincinnati, Ohio, and in Birmingham, Alabama. Through Memorial Day, May 28, 2018, Violins of Hope is in Nashville, Tennessee. Forty different exhibits and events—all but two are free—invite people into the story, into the music, into awareness, into hope. Major ones include concerts by the Nashville Symphony playing the violins and the Nashville Public Library's multifaceted exhibits.
Sheri answered a call to be a volunteer docent for the Library's exhibit. At first, in training, she felt overwhelmed by the intensity and responsibility of the story. Now, she is gratified to be able to help people of all ages understand, appreciate, and claim the message. To provide a 40-venue experience for a community for free requires volunteers, including those who raise the possibility within their home area, others like Sheri who raise awareness through their channels or on site, and others who raise needed funds. Volunteers make a difference. Volunteers for hope.
For more information, visit the website violinsofhopensh.org. May 28, 2018, is the final day for Nashville.
064 John and Elaine Berkheiser—Leader Dogs for the Blind
Raising Puppies and Opening Doors!
If you love dogs, you'll find kindred spirits in John and Elaine Berkheiser, who raise puppies (28 so far)—and give them away! The puppies ultimately go to work, serving persons who are blind, visually impaired, or blind-deaf.
How can the Berkheisers give them away? Each puppy accompanies them wherever they go—to stores, through parking lots, in cars, on busses, in hotels. Raising these puppies is a 24/7 job! Elaine admits that giving the dog up after their year together breaks their hearts. But...then comes the dog's graduation from the official training and the placement with the client. John and Elaine usually attend the ceremony and also take the occasion to meet the person who is receiving this furry opportunity for a more independent and fulfilling life. Many clients stay in touch, sending photos and notes of gratitude throughout the dog's service. With the bigger picture in mind, the couple begin again with a new puppy.
Founded by three Detroit-area Lions Clubs members in 1939, Leader Dogs for the Blind empowers people who are blind, visually impaired or deaf-blind with skills for a lifetime of independent travel, opening doors that may seem to have closed with the loss of sight. The organization began with four dogs and now trains and places nearly 500 every year.
To carry out their mission, Leader Dogs relies on multiple volunteers. Leader Dog "moms" handle the breeding program—mostly Labrador and Golden Retrievers with a smattering of German Shepherds. Volunteers, like the Berkheisers, who started because their daughter raised a puppy as her 4H project, provide love, basic training, and the adventures that result in a confident, alert, and loving companion ready for the next level of training and ultimately for service. The Berkheisers also volunteer as "puppy counselors," regularly visiting their network of other Leader Dog "puppy raisers," supporting and mentoring them. In addition, the organization provides manuals and training videos to assure that all involved—raisers and puppies—have a good experience, which will pay off in a greater quality of life for the client.
For persons receiving a dog, the placement training lasts 28 days. Leader Dogs also runs a summer camp for 16–17 year olds and a week-long "white cane" training. All of these services are free of charge to the recipients. If you know someone who is blind, visually impaired, or blind-deaf, either from birth or newly so, please encourage them to explore Leader Dog. A whole new life could be at the other end of the harness.
For more information or to explore volunteering with Leader Dogs for the Blind, visit leaderdog.org.
063 Kim Carrier—Minnesota Landscape Arboretum
Sampling the Fruits of Volunteering
With more than 900 volunteers each year, Volunteer Coordinator Kim Carrier knows something about what keeps volunteers coming and coming back to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum: "Enjoying the beauty of nature is its own lure. Even if they are not working in the garden, driving through the gate evokes an emotional and spiritual response. It's in our DNA to connect with nature and to support places like this."
The Arboretum has many opportunities for volunteers to connect and support. With 1,200 acres, multiple specialized trial and display gardens within the garden, wetlands and prairie restoration projects, and apple and grape variety development, volunteers who like to work hands on and "dig in the dirt" can readily find a place and like-minded company.
But as a nonprofit, the Arboretum also needs the skills of people who can contribute by raising funds, memberships, and attendance. Volunteers bring their expertise with spreadsheets, databases, and informative reports to assist the organization. Volunteers help with major events, including planning, marketing, dealing with logistics, and even cleaning up. Volunteers also educate inside the gardens as tour guides, knowledgeable tram drivers, and teachers for children's and adult classes. Outside the garden, volunteer ambassadors speak to groups about this treasure in their area while others use their skill with social media to generate enthusiasm and attendance at the Arboretum.
Kim readily admits that the most popular volunteer job, however, is apple tasting! As a research facility, the Arboretum is actively developing new strains of the fruit. The popular Honey Crisp and the new Tango apples are results of their work. A newer grape-breeding program is also underway.
No matter the skills, interests, or experiences volunteers bring, they can find a way to "connect with nature and to support places" like the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. Kim points out that across the U.S. are hundreds of other unique and wonderful gardens beckoning. Maybe they don't have apple tasting, but they will feed the emotional and spiritual needs of the human DNA.
For more about the educational program of the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, listen to the Retire-To podcast 057 with Fern Albertson.
For more about the Arboretum, visit their website (arboretum.umn.edu) or Facebook (facebook.com/MnArboretum) or YouTube (youtube.com/user/MnArboretum). Check your local area for volunteer opportunities in gardens near you.
062 Anne Huffman—Music & Memory
Bringing Back What Was “Lost”
A hospice volunteer, Anne Huffman, was keeping vigil at the bedside of a dying woman. Seeing the Bible at the patient's bedside, Anne began reading it aloud and then singing "Amazing Grace" softly. The woman, who previously had been non-communicative, responded. The patient died later that night, but a spark was born that day in Anne.
The spark was fanned when, in a subsequent training offered by the TLC program of hospice, Anne viewed the DVD, Alive Inside, and saw that her experience was not an anomaly. The organization Music & Memory has been making the lives of persons living with Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia, brain trauma, ALS, MS, and Parkinson's Disease better through individualized music playlists since 2006 in the U.S. and Canada.
Anne's fire grew through her church, where the congregation provided the funding and several members stepped up to help her, including the "tech guy" and two other women who each serve the patients in two local facilities, as does Anne, who also speaks to groups about the program, again fanning the flames.
For Anne, watching eyes light up and years melt away is her reward as she consistently sees patients suffering from both the disease and the ensuing isolation "awaken" in response to the music they remember.
But she also knows that the benefits of supplying individualized playlists to patients go beyond the specific person. With the resulting lessening of anxiety and agitation that often accompany this stage of life and the increasing social interaction and ability to converse that patients can experience, the atmosphere for all in the facility changes for the better. Families are also less stressed.
The Music & Memory organization provides, in conjunction with iTunes Plus and Apple, all that is needed to set up a program, including the guidelines for the legal use of the music.
For more information, visit musicandmemory.org.