Summer 2023
As we celebrate our eleventh year operating as a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization, we want to thank all of you who have helped in the journey of making music therapy, music education, and community outreach more accessible to those in need.
In the past eleven years, we’ve garnered support from all over the globe, including the use of the song “Join Together” from The Who/Pete Townshend for our campaign video, grants from Lou Adler and the Monterey International Pop Festival Foundation, partnerships with Austin City Limits (ALC Cares), The Joe Strummer Foundation, Martina McBride’s Team Music is Love, WeHero, ACM@UCO, Band Aid School of Music, Austin School of Music, Austin Classical Guitar, Pease Park, Sonder Music, TuneBugz, and SixTwelve, and received auction items from rock’n’roll icons Bob Gruen, Leon Russell, Eric Burdon, Lou Adler, and The Who as well as shout-outs from Carole King and James Taylor. We’ve hosted fourteen benefit concerts in Austin and Oklahoma City at partnered venues the One-2-One Bar, Antone’s, the Continental Club, the East Austin Piano Shop (Monks), the Far Out Lounge, and the Blue Door with some of the region’s most legendary musicians. We also organized fundraisers for our music community hit by Hurricane Harvey as well as the COVID-19 pandemic. We have received support from local businesses and artists such as the Brain Music Center of Austin, Strait Music Co., Antone’s Record Shop, Waterloo Records, End of an Ear Records, Guestroom Records, Whetstone Audio, Rupert Neve Designs, ACL Live at Moody Theatre, Old Settler’s Music Festival, Austin Land & Cattle, Mustang Brewery, Core4 Brewery, Earl’s Rib Palace, Alamo Drafthouse, Hotel St. Cecilia, Forward Foods, Amy’s Ice Cream, P. Terry’s, Crimson & Cream, Ralston Services, Dangerbird Management, the LBJ Library & Museum, Kelly D Tees, Jesse Sublett, Tim Kerr, Keisha Register, Dave Mead, Judi Newberry, Matt Hildebrand, Chris Green, Kim Yarbrough, Bella Martinez, Colin Shook, Music Water, Home Slice Pizza, Juiceland, Tito’s Vodka, The Soup Peddler, BookPeople, and No Comply Skate Shop, as well as media sponsorships from the Austin Chronicle and This Land Press. MMMF has been featured in the Oklahoma Gazette, the Norman Transcript, the Oklahoman, Oklahoma Today, KOKH/Fox News, Inside Austin/Audacy Radio, CBS/KEYE We Are Austin, ABC/KVUE News, Fox 7 Austin, KLBJ 93.7, KOOP 91.7, and KUTX 98.9.
Together, we have donated over $15,000 worth of instruments and gear to individuals, schools, therapists, special needs educators, and organizations as part of our “Play It Forward” initiative. We have raised over $10,000 for music scholarships and mentorships for underserved and marginalized populations. As part of our “All Abilities Rock” program, we have hosted free sensory-friendly concerts, music therapy awareness events, adaptive music education classes, and brought live musical performances via our “Feeding the Soul” series to memory care facilities and homeless shelters. Our programs have also generated income for working musicians, music educators, recording companies, music retailers, and more.
In 2022, we were very proud to release our “All Abilities Rock” sponsored artist Devin Gutierrez’s debut album “Peripheral Vision: Live at the East Austin Piano Shop” for the world to hear. Grammy-award winner and Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame recipient Carole King introduced Devin’s album to her fans, which includes a beautiful cover of her song “You’ve Got a Friend.” We hosted a record release show at the East Austin Piano Shop with special guests Blue Mist (all alumni of the Texas School for the Blind) and rising artist Chris Cebrian. Then in December, we produced a special Christmas cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Someday at Christmas” with Devin. We are also happy to announce that Devin has become an official BMI songwriter and that he was accepted as a member of Recording Artists and Music Professionals with Disabilities (RAMPD), a new advocacy group created by Grammy NY Board Governor, Lachi.
Also in 2022, we launched a memorial music scholarship in honor of our dear friend and MMMF supporter Scotty Mescal. We celebrated his life and his contributions to the Foundation at our 10th anniversary benefit concert at the Far Out Lounge in Austin where a special mural of his him by Tim Kerr is next to the stage.
So, as we continue in our mission, we ask for your continued support. As a small, volunteer-run non-profit organization, we rely on donations from the public. If you are a believer in the powers of music, there are many ways to join us in our journey. You can donate directly or make an impact via our online platform partners (Facebook Fundraisers, Paypal Giving, Charity eBay, Giving Assistant, etc.). There are opportunities to become a community partner, sponsor, in-kind donor, or a volunteer! Your contribution is a direct investment into the community, which also supports the music community, music educators, and music therapists along the way – it’s a win-win!
Much love and gratitude,
Julie Frost, Founder & Director
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