Gibson Gives - Philanthropic Arm of the Iconic American Guitar Brand -
Donates $300,000 To Metro Nashville Public Schools and Music Makes Us To Support Students
Cover Image (L-R): Chelsea Payne (Donelson Middle School), Ryan Murphey (Nashville School of the Arts), Sarah Robinson (Performing Arts Coordinator), Jeffrey Smith (Director, Visual and Performing Arts, Metro Nashville Public Schools), James “JC” Curleigh (President and CEO, Gibson Brands), Cesar Gueikian (Brand President, Gibson Brands), Heather Freeland (Entertainment Relations-Nashville, Gibson Brands) and Dendy Jarrett (Executive Director, Gibson Gives) photographed at the Gibson Garage in downtown Nashville. Download photo, credit Gibson: HERE.
NASHVILLE, TN (September 22, 2021) Gibson Gives, the philanthropic arm of Gibson - the iconic American guitar brand - has announced today a $300,000 donation to benefit students attending Metro Nashville Public Schools. The public private partnership Music Makes Us will distribute the donation of guitars and other music equipment across Metro Nashville Public Schools music education programs, as well as sistering school districts.
The Gibson Gives donation will directly benefit students in schools with guitar learning programs including the following schools: Antioch High School, Bellevue Middle School, Donelson Middle School, H.G. Hill Middle School, Hillwood High School, John Overton High School, Maplewood High School, McGavock High School, and Nashville School of the Arts. The donation includes Gibson guitars (electric, acoustic, and bass guitars), 36 amplifiers, 1700 pairs of guitar strings, and 116 guitar stands. Additionally, Gibson Gives has provided 1000 PPE face masks to all Nashville Metro Public Schools music students valued at $4,000.
“Gibson Gives’ extremely generous donation to Metro Nashville Public Schools and Music Makes Us will make a huge difference for our guitar students and teachers across Nashville and Davidson County as they enjoy being back in classrooms and on stages together,” says Dr. Adrienne Battle, Director of Schools, Metro Nashville Public Schools. “Thank you to Gibson Gives for once again sharing the gift of music with our schools.”
“Part of the mission of Gibson Gives is supporting music education,” says Dendy Jarrett Executive Director, Gibson Gives. “Music Makes Us through Nashville Public Schools is a fantastic program that bridges a gap between federal funds and school music needs. We are proud to support them right here in our hometown of Nashville, TN.”
As the philanthropic arm of Gibson, the mission of Gibson Gives is to create, develop and support non-profit organizations in their efforts to advance musicians, youth-focused education, music, and wellness initiatives. 100% of all donations to and from Gibson Gives - a 501(c)(3) organization - go towards giving the gift of music. Since re-launching in 2019, Gibson Gives has raised over $3 million dollars worldwide through its mission. Gibson Gives is changing lives…one guitar at a time. For more information, visit: www.gibsongives.org.
Metro Nashville Public Schools:
METRO NASHVILLE PUBLIC SCHOOLS.ORG
Music Makes Us:
Gibson Gives:
About Music Makes Us®:
Music Makes Us is a unique partnership between Metro Nashville Public Schools, the Mayor’s Office and the Nashville community. Together, these organizations work to provide meaningful support for Nashville’s public school music programs. Our goal is to increase access, participation, and quality of music education for MNPS students. The Music Makes Us initiative is administered by the Visual and Performing Arts department at Metro Nashville Public Schools. A Music Makes Us advisory council advances the goals of Music Makes Us and supports the sustainability of the public/private partnership through both strategic and tactical efforts, including the cultivation of community allies and funding sources.
About Gibson Gives:
Gibson Gives and KRK Kares work extensively with other charities in a 360 degree way, raising the funds they need the most right now including MusiCares, The Recording Academy (GRAMMY’s), Guitars For Vets (helping U.S. military veterans with PTSD), Let’s Stay (In) Together Apollo Theater Benefit, Women Who Rock (raised over $45,000 for breast cancer research at Magee Women’s Research Institute) Ryan Seacrest Foundation (placed Gibson instruments and KRK studio gear in all of their U.S. hospitals for pediatric patients and offering them music-making lessons to cope with illness), JoyRxMusic® Children’s Cancer Association (arranged music lessons for hospitalized kids and teens facing cancer and serious illness) and the Do it for the Love’ Foundation (a wish-granting non-profit organization for people living with life-threatening illnesses). Gibson Gives became the exclusive stringed instrument provider for the Nashville based non-profit Musicians On Call (who arrange in-room and virtual performances by superstar artists with hospital patients) and donated high-value guitars for auction to support the Teenage Cancer Trust (London, U.K.). Gibson Gives partnered with the NAMM Foundation for their Believe In Music 2021program - NAMM attendees both donated and selected the non-profit they wanted to receive their donation - raising $20,000 in three days. Since re-launching in 2019, Gibson Gives has raised over $3 million dollars worldwide through its mission to create, develop and support non-profit organizations in their efforts to advance musicians, youth-focused education, and wellness initiatives. 100% of all donations to and from Gibson Gives - a 501(c)(3) organization - go towards giving the gift of music. Gibson Gives is changing lives…one guitar at a time. For more information, visit: www.gibsongives.org.
About Gibson:
Gibson, the leading iconic guitar brand, has shaped the sounds of generations of musicians and music lovers across genres for 127 years. Founded in 1894 and headquartered in Nashville, Gibson Brands has a legacy of world-class craftsmanship, legendary music partnerships, and progressive product evolution that is unrivaled among musical instrument companies. The Gibson Brands portfolio includes Gibson, the leading guitar brand, as well as many of the most beloved and recognizable music brands, including Epiphone, which has been on every stage since 1873, Kramer, the original MADE TO ROCK HARD guitar brand, MESA/Boogie, the Home of Tone®, and KRK, behind great music for over 30 years. Gibson Brands is dedicated to quality, innovation, and sound excellence so that music lovers for generations to come will continue to experience music shaped by Gibson Brands. Learn more at Gibson.com and follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Gibson TV, and Instagram.
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