A few years ago, a second-grade teacher at Winterfield Elementary School in east Charlotte brought her violin to class to demonstrate concepts like volume and pitch to her students.
"That’s so beautiful," one of Courtney Hollenbeck’s students told her. "I’d love to learn how to play."
Hollenbeck started Winterfield Elementary’s free violin program, donating her time and money to buy instruments and lessons. She had to. Winterfield is a Title I school, with about 90 percent of students’ families, most of them African-American and Latino, living below the poverty line.
Meanwhile, Meg Whalen, the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra’s director of public relations and community engagement, was looking for a vehicle for her own goal: to get the CSO involved in community outreach, especially for disadvantaged kids. Hollenbeck called her one day to ask if the CSO could provide any support for her program. “When Courtney called, it was like this invitation,” Whalen said. “It was like the Lord had sent me a violin program.”
So, with the help of a $2,500 Front Porch Grant from Foundation For The Carolinas, Connecting Families Through Music was born. The CSO is organizing three concerts, the first of which was on Nov. 17 at the school. But they’re not just concerts. Professional musicians perform separately and with the violin students, integrating audience participation and a meal afterward.
Bank of America's Uptown Urban Garden was packed Wednesday morning with corporate, non-profit, government and community leaders filling every chair. They were there to learn about Crossroads Charlotte's plan of action for 2011. On their tables, one-word signs read, "Connect," "Family," "Equality" and "Today."
"We are very excited about moving forward with all of you," Crossroads' Executive Director Tracy Russ said.
But before looking to the future, we took a look at the past. Since its inception in 2003, Crossroads has awarded $864,487 in grants, and another $321,233 in Front Porch Grants, in an effort to boost Charlotte's social capital. In 2009 alone, more than 6,000 citizens from 22 zip codes connected via Crossroads-led community engagement efforts like the XChange Sermons series.
Jamal Griffin of the Catawba Lands Conservancy explained how his organization's Eye To Eye meetings taught him how to engage his multi-ethnic community. He says, despite his best efforts, his first meeting wasn't well attended. Then, he asked one of his neighbors for help. Together they knocked on doors, encouraging everyone to bring a signature dish from their country of origin to the Taste of Lakewood. And they did. The turnout was "awesome," he said.
Applications are now available for the 2010-2011 Front Porch Grant Program. You can learn more about it, here, on the Foundation For The Carolina’s website. Front Porch Grants support the creation of small-scale gatherings that build relationships by exchanging ideas, experiences or actions. The grant program is named to honor the power of a simple gathering place, such as a front porch, where people can meet and begin to build relationships. The Front Porch Grants program is open to neighborhood associations, social clubs, school groups and other civic organizations. Grants will be awarded up to $2,500.
Applications are due June 18th. There will be two Technical Assistance sessions held to answer questions and to provide help with projects and applications. The first session will be Thursday, May 27th, 5:30pm to 7:30pm and the second session will be Wednesday, June 2nd, 11:30am to 1:00pm. Both sessions will take place at the Foundation.
Front Porch Grants foster bridge building between individuals, communities, neighborhoods and organizations. The goal of the grant program is to increase trust and expand social connections and informal networks.
Crossroads Charlotte presents four stories based on real data about Charlotte's future and asks the community to Imagine Our Tomorrow and respond to the stories.
Crossroads Charlotte offers numerous ways for citizens to get involved in our community and help shape Charlotte's future. Act Today and make a difference.
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Jazz pianist Noel Freidline at the Connecting Families Through Music concert.
Posted: November 18th, 2010 Greg Lacour
