USING MUSIC TO EDUCATE, MOTIVATE, & INSPIRE PEOPLE IN RECOVERY FROM LIFE CHALLENGES

HAS MUSIC BEEN PART OF YOUR RECOVERY PROCESS??

INSTRUMENTS OF HEALING IS.....

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GIVE THE GIFT OF MUSICAL WELLNESS IN 2021

The Instruments of Healing (IoH) staff, Board of Directors, and program participants send you warm greetings, as 2021 starts up with hope and optimism in the air. This past year proved to be a challenging year for people everywhere, and IoH was no exception. With significantly decreased programming due to the pandemic, we were faced with the challenge of "keeping our lights on", and continuing to deliver musical wellness programming to those whom we were still able to reach by way of a virtual conferencing platform. We are proud to report that by the close of 2020, we reached approximately 600 unique program participants, even in the midst of our limited amounts of programming. This would not have been able to happen without the help of our donors and supporters, who came out in droves to support us during our "Help When We Need It Most" Summer Fundraiser and our End-of-Year Campaign. We were able to pay our bills, pay our staff, and continue to bring musical wellness to those who needed it most - now more than ever.

As we move ahead into a new year with the pandemic continuing to affect us this winter and spring, many of the people we serve will continue to face great social isolation and loneliness. In the words of a regular IoH virtual program participant: “…For those of us diagnosed with any type of mental illness, community is especially crucial. The COVID-19 pandemic has isolated so many people. As a musician, I feel welcomed and appreciated [at IoH programs]....everyone supports and affirms without criticism. We identify with each other because we have this struggle in common: staying well with so little social interaction. It takes real effort, but we can make that effort together by keeping our music and community going. Thanks to IoH, we have this ability to help each other.”

As we continue to help our program participants in 2021, we are asking for your support to help IoH successfully keep our music and community going. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to Instruments of Healing. There are three options for making a monetary donation:

Donate through the secure platform Network for Good by using the button below
Donate through Facebook by using the Donate button on our IoH Facebook Page
Mail a check to IoH at: Instruments of Healing, 11945 Sweet Shrub Circle, Clarksburg, MD 20871

Another great way of supporting IoH, year round, is to donate musical instruments in good condition. If you would like to donate an instrument, please contact us at 301-648-5235 or email our CEO, Andy Goldenson, at andy@instrumentsofhealing.org to make arrangements with us.

IoH and the program participants that we serve thank you for consideration in donating whatever you can (no donation is too big or too small), and wish you all the best for a wonderful and hopeful 2021.

FIND OUT ABOUT IoH BY WATCHING THIS VIDEO

WHAT DOES IOH DO?

Instruments of Healing is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, with the mission of creating interactive musical experiences that inspire
our peers in their recovery from mental health and substance use challenges. The programs presented by IoH include discussion about using music in recovery, introduction to new instruments, instrumental experimentation, group jamming, solo singing, sing-alongs, and "musical peer support." This unique mobile peer-run, peer-based organization brings a range of professional-grade musical instruments for our program participants to play during the many programs we give throughout Maryland, Washington DC, Virginia, and beyond. During the programs, our participants lend each other a unique form of musical peer support that is non-judgmental, safe, encouraging, and supportive. Our peers teach each other, share their skills and talents, listen attentively to each other perform, and bond together over music. Confidence and self-esteem are consequently fostered during the IoH music-making experience, moods and spirits are lifted, and skills acquired are often used and transferred to help people in their daily wellness.

For the past six years, Dr. Alicia Lucksted at the University of Maryland has helped IoH to develop ways to measure and track the success of our program in helping peers with their recovery process. In particular, we have focused on the realms of personal growth, use of music as a daily wellness tool, and mood improvement. The results over the years have consistently indicated that our organization is making a significant difference and impact on helping peers in the Maryland and DC regions in their personal wellness and recovery through the use of music. Would you like to find out how to make this happen for you, or bring the IoH program to the behavioral health program/s you attend or work for?