Lawrence Music Clubhouse Fifth Anniversary!!!
Boston, MA, March 2010
It is with great pleasure that we join the Lawrence YMCA to celebrate
the fifth anniversary of the Lawrence Music Clubhouse!! The LMC was
Music & Youth's first clubhouse and it has grown into a vibrant place
for kids from Lawrence to learn to play and perform music. We want
to extend a special thank you and congratulations to Frank Kenneally,
Executive Director of the Lawrence YMCA, whose continuous support
has made the Music Clubhouse possible!
David Bickel, the Music Clubhouse director, has been working tirelessly
to create a great environment for after school music education at the
clubhouse. Here are David's reflections upon reaching this milestone:
"I’m honored to be a part of the Music Clubhouse program and most days (after working with 40+ teens) I leave exhausted yet highly inspired from all that our members are creating. Over the past years I’ve seen an empty room slowly gather gear, instruments and technology… more importantly I’ve seen the room packed full of teens excited to pursue music and desperate for a place they can call their own. Grafted into a typical 'gym and swim' program, the Music Clubhouse has become an oasis for many teens with very different interests and tastes in music that otherwise would never set foot in the YMCA.
We’ve worked hard on providing a space as well as opportunities where teens from age 10-18 feel inspired and safe to express themselves musically and artistically and helping them pursue their dreams, but the teens have worked much harder. Our youth are the reason for the success of the Clubhouse and I’m reminded of that every day. Whether they walk, run, bike or ride the bus… they show up ready to work hard and have fun. We’ve seen countless students achieve musical proficiency with nothing more than an opportunity to succeed and pure self motivation!
But nothing exemplifies the Clubhouse culture more than the relationships formed every day after school. The staff at the Lawrence Music Clubhouse have become big brothers and big sisters to countless teens across the Merrimack Valley and through music have encouraged each one of them, not only to pursue a passion for music, but a passion for life as well."
We look forward to continuing to partner with the Lawrence Music Clubhouse in the years ahead. Once again, congratulations!!
