There are people in this world that have found the way to change the course of the people they have touched in positive and profound ways; Founder and Creative Director of HARMONY PROJECT David Brown is one of those humans! Puffin Foundation West is proud to be a generous sponsor of the Harmony Project, as we know our Grant supports a myriad of undertakings of the Harmony Project that make a positive and profound difference in the Columbus, Ohio community.
This year you will see PFW sponsorship on many Harmony Project undertakings; be it connected with the 200 voice strong Choir, the work done with pop-up choirs at community events or at the Ohio Reformatory for Women (ORW). This year the Harmony Project is dedicated to bringing programming to these women through the Tapestry Program. This therapeutic community or “family” within the walls of the ORW has highly structured programming that works to assist addicted inmates to change the direction of their lives during incarceration so upon their release they have the tools to change the direction of their lives. The Harmony Project in collaboration with the Community Shelter Board will also utilize some PFW funding for its work at the Commons at Grant and the Commons at Buckingham. One of the most successful programs known as Harmony High in partnership with City Year Columbus created an after school choir at South High School. The result of this collaboration after one year demonstrated dramatically that when you involve at-risk youth in arts programs they experience increased grades, increased attendance and a decrease in discipline referrals.
David Brown will teach anyone to sing, as he believes that we all have at least one note in us, but in exchange the volunteer members of Harmony Project must SERVE. Last year the members served hundreds of meals to hungry families, planted 300 trees, landscaped a neighborhood intersection, painted and installed murals along Livingston Avenue that reflected the history of the Street Car District (this was part of a 2013 PFW Grant), built three playgrounds and generated of 7000 hours of volunteer community service.
In all they do, the underlying theme that Puffin West applauds is simply stated by Mr. Brown:
ONE VOICE. ONE PURPOSE. ONE COMMUNITY!
