Hello friends –
It's a pleasure to report that our spring events in Portsmouth, NH; Seattle; New York City and Boca Raton were fantastic. These events were each different but all fun, musical and most importantly, an important source of revenue that will keep sending ukuleles to hospitalized kids all over the country, and beyond.
We never could have done it without the talent and hard work of our volunteer event producers: June Pinkham, Chontel Klobas, Jay Della Valle and Terry Glynn.
And although school's ending soon, and summer vacation is coming up fast, we're going to keep cranking here at UKC. Jay Della Valle is already hard at work on another event in Los Angeles on July 28 (mark your calendars!); our friend Sandy Kiernan is planning a top-end fundraiser at the elegant Casa Monica Resort & Spa in St. Augustine; and our talented board of seasoned professionals is hard at work to keep revenue high, expenses low, and inventory of ukuleles shipping out fast.
Thank you so much for your support. Our goal is to ship 10,000 ukuleles to music therapy programs by the end of the year and we're on track!
All my best,
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Luthiers for a Cause
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You may have heard of Luthiers for a Cause. This generous collective of craftsmen and women of stringed instruments has been an incredible ally to UKC. Learn more about these masters of their craft, and their support of UKC.
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Fun, Fund Raiser
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Keep your eyes peeled for one of our favorite fundraising events of the year: the Painted Uke auction, presented by the Modified Dolls. Spearheaded by UKC Chief of Staff Amber O'Leary, this auction features ukes hand-painted by world-class tattoo artists. For years, these auctions been a consistent source of donations and support for UKC. Stay tuned for our auction on eBay next month!
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Mountain Acoustics Luthier Invitational
Burnsville, NC – May 24-26
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Our dear friend, UKC Director and master luthier Jay Lichty is the MC of this incredible event. Dozens of craftsmen and women will display and discuss their guitars, lutes, mandolins, fiddles, dulcimers (and of course, ukes). Workshops, concerts, raffles – we can't wait to hear more. Luthiers for a Cause and UKC will be there.
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Meet Jonny, a UKC kid and the Children's Miracle Network Hero of the Year! This brave boy is showing his strength against a serious health condition. His music therapist, Holly Platis, tells us: "I met Jonny when he relapsed from lymphocytic leukemia in 2017. During his time at Beaumont Children's, Jonny was drawn to the ukulele and has been active with Children's Miracle Network as their Hero of the Year. While working with Jonny, my goals were to help him develop coping skills and give him an emotional outlet during his long admissions. His favorite songs to play are from Twenty One Pilots and SpongeBob Square Pants! Jonny finished treatment earlier this week and was able to celebrate with CMN! His favorite quote is 'tough times don't last...tough kids do!'" Now that's one of our favorite quotes, too.
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