Hometown Concert a Benefit for Operation Happy Note

Each year the members of Kathy Boyd & Phoenix Rising perform a concert in their hometown of Tualatin, Oregon.  This year the Saturday, April 5th show will be a benefit for Operation Happy Note (http://www.operationhappynote.com). 

 

The concert will take place at the beautiful Tualatin Heritage Center located at 8700 SW Sweek Drive in Tualatin, Oregon (97062).  Tickets are available online at the bands main website (http://www.phoenixrisingband.org) under the "Events" tab or at the door for $10 general admission.

 

Operation Happy Note is a small non-profit organization that supplies the gift of musical instruments to our overseas troops.  Run by Steve and Barb Baker, the organization believes in music's power to soothe and inspire.  Their ultimate goal is to provide an instrument to every service member who requests one. 

 

Last Christmas, the Bakers shipped 48 guitars, drumsticks, harmonicas, and extra strings and picks.  The instruments arrived in Iraq three days before Christmas.  Staff Sgt. Louis Karsnia, a member of the Minnesota National Guard distributed them. 

 

"Before, you'd see guys with their iPods on, listening to music, staying away from everybody else," says Sergeant Karsnia.  "But when the guitars came, people got together.  We'd have four or five guys playing guitar, and 25 or 30 others laughing and singing."  In other words, the music made them a family in a place very far from home. 

 

One of the West Coasts premier bluegrass bands, Kathy Boyd & Phoenix Rising have also adopted an Airman through Operation AnySoldier (http://www.anysoldier.com) and actually ended up being given a serviceman from Kathy's home town of Clatskanie, Oregon! 

 

 "We have been blessed with this amazing gift of music." states band leader Kathy Boyd.  "To be able to use it to both entertain the public and to do a general kindness to a fellow human being is both humbling and awesome at the same time. The local VFW has gotten involved in this project and the support from the local businesses and our fans has been phenomenal." 

 

For more information on the concert call 503-691-1177 or check out the bands main website at http://www.phoenixrisingband.org. 

 

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