the Evansville Press article
Yet another ThrowBack Thursday entry:
One of the bullets on my checkered musician’s resume of which I’m most proud is my 4-year stint as a Master Music Artist with Very Special Arts of Indiana. In the mid-1980s, I got involved with Very Special Arts via a musician friend of mine, Joyce Pedigo, a brilliant artist-in-residence for the organization, who became my mentor.
I had no idea when I signed up how far my association with VSA would take me.
At the time, there were only two art-related items on the federal budget: the National Endowment for the Arts, and Very Special Arts. VSA was the creation of Ms. Jean Kennedy-Smith, sister of President Kennedy and a staunch advocate for special-needs children. With chapters in all 50 states, and several chapters abroad as well, VSA brought artists together with teachers in schools, diagnostic centers and institutions for the disabled to bring art-related activities to young challenged populations, hopefully in a fashion that would facilitate learning and awareness in the kids. I found the work immensely challenging, and supremely satisfying.
This article (“Because They’re Special”- in PDF) was published in the Evansville Press in 1987, showcasing a residency I did down that way. A residency was a semester-long, 1-day/week engagement where I’d drive to the facility and bring my art-related activities to the kids. Most of my activities used music as the medium, of course, but I also dabbled in visual arts, movement and simple fun stuff. One day I’ll post something detailing some of the concepts and approaches I used in this area of work.
My interest in working with special kids led me to Dr. Barbara Wolf, a professor who taught Special Education at Indiana University-Bloomington, where I was attending college at the time. With help from Dr. Wolf and VSAI, I was able to put together a rather unique project in 1988 which IU helped finance with an Honor’s Grant of $1000 — traveling to Croatia (then still a republic of Yugoslavia) to examine how arts-in-education was used over there in working with special populations. The research resulted in a paper which can be found here.
But the story doesn’t end there. In 1989, as a result of my trip to Croatia, I was tapped to represent Yugoslavia as an official delegate at the first annual Very Special Arts International Festival, held in Washington, DC. There I got to attend a plethora of events, perform at the Kennedy Center, and the trip culminated with a visit to the White House, where I shook hands with President GHW Bush and the First Lady, Barbara Bush. One thing I vividly recall is that the President had an immovable, vice-like handshake, cultivated over a lifetime of political schmoozing. My general opinion of politicians notwithstanding, it was a definitely a most memorable experience.
The only reason my tenure with VSA ended was because I relocated to California in 1990, where I immediately got busy doing the music thing. I have not reengaged in the field of special education since, but have many fond memories of that period of my life, and carry with me the awareness gained during a very special time. And I can honestly say that, in return for whatever I was able to contribute to the lives of my VSA kids, I unquestionable gained much more. I will be forever grateful to each and every one of the kids for that.
