In response to the devastation caused by the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti, Seattle Symphony accepted donations on behalf of The American Red Cross International Response Fund at its free community concerts, Jan. 15 and 19. The orchestra's performances of Samuel Jones' Benediction on Jan. 15 and his Elegy on Jan. 19 were dedicated to the victims of Haiti's earthquake. These community concerts took place at South Seattle Community College and at Mercer Middle School. Performances were free and open to the public.
The American Red Cross has made available all of the relief supplies from its warehouse in Panama which would provide for basic needs for approximately 5,000 families. In addition, it is deploying a disaster management specialist to Haiti, and has additional disaster specialists on standby if needed. The American Red Cross has an extensive partnership with the Haitian Red Cross, which is expected to lead the Red Cross response to the earthquake.
The Haitian Red Cross was founded in 1932 and is one of the primary organizations in the country responding to disasters. Although earthquakes are less common, Haiti is frequently affected by hurricanes, including those in 2008, and the Haiti Red Cross has developed experience in disaster response due those disasters.
The free community concerts were part of Seattle Symphony's ongoing ACCESS Project (Artistic and Cultural Community Engagement with Seattle Symphony), dedicated to bringing classical music to underserved communities throughout the region. In addition to the public performances, the Orchestra presents several private, in-school performances, serving a total of eight schools. In 2006, the ACCESS Project received the MetLife Award for Excellence in Community Engagement, a national award program administered by the League of American Orchestras. The ACCESS Project is supported in part by The Peg and Rick Young Foundation, the Mayor's Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs, 4Culture, National Endowment for the Arts and PONCHO. Overall, Seattle Symphony's education programs reach 105,000 people annually, with school programs reaching 120 schools in 24 districts.[[In-content Ad]]
