We've been crazy busy over at the MELBA Foundation planning milestone events that lead us to hit numbers we had no idea we were going to hit. On December 20, 2023 an awesome Twitch streamer, Anna Carmela volunteered to organize a raid train that she called, “The 12 Raids Of Christmas.” We were ecstatic to know she wanted to help! Little did we know that the Twitch music streamers she organized would collectively raise $9521.
It truly felt like such a victory to have so many streamers believe in our mission and support our cause. 24 hours, 12 streamers, pure joy! Everything about everyone's streams were so much fun. Each streamer had their own flare and incentives which made it even more entertaining to watch
Thanks to these incredible streamers we had the confidence to produce one of the most professional (and most pricey) 2 piano benefit concerts to date at the Colburn School of Music in Thayer Hall on Jan 12, 2024, where our performing artists were able to shine on $250,000 9 foot concert grand pianos with acoustics that were unparalleled.
It was the first concert we were able to have our first official public sponsor Loudly Inclusive. Loudly Inclusive is a media collective who's mission is to support and uplift artists especially those in marginalized groups. You can find more info about them here https://www.loudlyinclusive.com/
Ticket sales for this concert raised up to $2850 which was incredible! That means within the span of one month, we were able to raise a total of $12,371. If we continue at the pace we're at, we will be offering more and more scholarships in no time. We would love to be able to offer at least $10,000 in scholarships this year. Let's cross our fingers!
If you go to our Instagram page https://www.instagram.com/themelbafoundation you can follow along with some highlights and reels from the concert. It truly felt like a magical night. The main highlight of the night was when we were able to physically hand over a jumbo check to Bobbie Sanchez, the music director of the FASO Junior Orchestra. The look on her face as well as the kids faces were more than words can even describe. Life never felt more fulfilling.
Now that we've got the ball rolling, it's safe to say that we're already planning our Romblon Outreach Program in the Philippines. Our trip is set and planned for Feb 3 - Mar 18, 2024. So far the goal is to donate another 200 books, 200 pencils, possibly another keyboard if it's easy to load onto the ferry, and offer another music workshop. Nothing is set in stone quite yet but once we arrive to introduce the MELBA Foundation to all of the elementary schools, we will have a better idea of which schools we will be implementing our Outreach Program.
Huge thank you to everyone that has been supporting our mission and journey while we grow from our infancy phases of non-profit. It has already been such a rewarding experience and look forward to decades to come!