Saturday, March 07, 2009

NEWS FROM WILLYE B. WHITE COMMUNITY CENTER

A new children's music education program is coming to Willye White Community Center. The P.A.U.S.E program has agreed to establish and offer an afterschool music program at the Center begining this fall. Visit the P.A.U.S.E Web Site here: http://pause.gsmfoundation.org

In 2008, The George S. May Foundation for the Arts (
gsmfoundation.org) launched the P.A.U.S.E. initiative, an afterschool music education program designed to give students direct access to music instruction. Recent budget cuts have limited music education, but P.A.U.S.E., which stands for Positive Action Using Self Expression, exposes youngsters to music and gives them access to instruments and music lessons.

“Music inspires so many of our children to reach their highest potential, however budget cuts in inner-city schools often prevent students from learning anything about music,” said Israel Kushnir, chairman of the board for the George S. May Foundation for the Arts. “The P.A.U.S.E. initiative was created to supplement after-school music instruction that has been impacted by budget cuts, as well as give our youth access to music as an inspiration and vehicle toward higher achievement.”

The George S. May Foundation for the Arts, a 501(c) (3) organization, is a civic and community service extension of the George S. May International Company (GSMIC), a management consulting firm based in Park Ridge. The P.A.U.S.E. initiative was established by the foundation as a privately funded grant that awards financial assistance to selected programs and organizations that use music-based curriculums as a gateway to personal enrichment, community involvement, cautious decision making, and good citizenship.

Through the program, pre-kindergarten through 12th grade students in inner-city public schools and community-based after-school programs will learn to read music and play an instrument.
To help support the P.A.U.S.E. initiative, the George S. May Foundation for the Arts is also collecting musical instruments and other donations from the public. The instrument drive welcomes refurbished, gently-used, or new instruments as donations where children in the program can benefit.

Donated instruments can be dropped off at the George S. May International Company, located at 303 S. Northwest Highway, in Park Ridge. For more information on P.A.U.S.E, or to arrange for a donation pick-up, visit http://pause.gsmfoundation.org or
call 1-800-999-3020.

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