Last Sunday’s annual “Music, Music, Music” concert at Orcas Island School Gym showed what vision and perseverance can do.
For 15 years, the Orcas Island Music Advocacy Group (MAG) has brought forward local music groups and music students to perform for the Orcas community. This year’s event was emceed by Dimitri Stankevich who introduced Island Sinfornia, the Middle School Band, High School Strings, the Orcas Youth Orchestra, Orcas Choral Society and the Orcas Island Community Band, all playing from their repertoire and joining in a traditional finale, “God Bless America.”
Midway through the concert, Orcas Elementary/Middle School Principal Kyle Freeman presented the MENC [National]/Washington Music Educators Association “Friends of Music” award to Catherine Pederson, representing the Music Advocacy Group (MAG).
Pederson acknowledged the founders of MAG– Marilyn Anderson, Victoria Parker and Joyce Burghardt — who advocated the value of music education as a major component of the learning process. To ensure Orcas Schools incorporated music education in the schools’ long-range goals, MAG began in 1997 as a fund under the Orcas Island Education Foundation. (MAG became a separate non-profit in 2000).
Pederson acknowledged the early involvement of Orcas Elementary Principal Coleen O’Brien, Pat Emery and Virgil Cleveland, and the ongoing support of Ken and Karen Speck and Jan Cleveland. Current Music Advocacy Group members include Karen Blinn, Jan Ehrlichman, Pat Hunt, Barb Skotte, Linda Slone and Chris Waage.
Pederson announced that over the past 15 years MAG has awarded over $33,000 in grants for music student to attend festivals, competitions and concerts and to provide instruments and materials. In addition, MAG has funded music teaching positions in the amount of $18,000. The school’s music program has grown in 15 years from supporting one part-time music teacher to two teachers now, one almost fulltime and one halftime teacher.
Orcas Music Teacher Pamela Wright nominated MAG for the award.
Future concerts will be given by the groups who performed at the MAG concert on March 4:
- Island Sinfonia — March 24 at Orcas Island Community Church
- Orcas Choral Society — May 12 and 13 at Orcas Center
- Orcas Middle/High School Spring Concert — May 31 at Orcas Center
- Orcas Island Community Band — June 2 at Orcas Center
MAG has been a constant and transformative presence in our public schools with regard to music. This award is so well deserved. Congratulations to MAG!
Congratulations and THANK YOU to the merry band of volunteers who have kept the beat and lead the march for so many years to fill our students with a life long love of music. MAG tops the charts!
And can you believe it has been our joy – what would life be without music? And great teachers?
It’s a pleasure to serve and keep music in your life. So great to see the students be involved in something real which they will have all of their lives.