The theme of “music as medicine” has been integrated all throughout the philanthropic missions of the Children’s Hospital Foundation this past year. Proceeds from these annual events funded the construction of the new Child Life Zone which opened in November. Words & Wisdom, in which singer/songwriter Ashley Campbell shared stories and powerful memories of how music strengthened her father, Glen Campbell’s journey through Alzheimer’s raised $185,000 while the 61st Annual Children’s Ball, which celebrated the arts through a stunning Broadway musical theme, raised almost half a million dollars through sponsorships and donations.
Put simply, the Child Life Zone is where kids can be kids. It was brought to the Children’s Hospital of Richmond by Teammates for Kids, a national organization founded in 1999 by Garth Brooks. They establish Child Life Zones in children’s hospitals across the country and support the child life teams at every stage- from concept and design to construction and maintenance. This immersive space lets art and music therapy take center stage and provides children with a creative outlet to express emotions, cope with pain and stress, and have fun in a hospital environment. This meaningful space and the need for art and music therapists are critical as the Children’s Tower has increased patient volumes.
Providing this sanctuary for kids also wouldn’t be possible without the Arts in Healthcare program, dedicated to providing therapeutic resources above and beyond the world-class clinical care. We believe some things happen for a reason, so it was no mistake that while attending the Children’s Ball last month, Donna Spurrier met her dinner partner, Alexis Shockley. Alexis leads the Arts in Healthcare program at VCU and the two instantly connected over their love of music and the role it can play in healing hearts.
By the end of the evening, Donna learned about a critical need that Alexis shared– that the music therapy team needed better recording equipment and space to produce custom recordings for patients and their families. Heartbeat recordings of patients in end-of-life care are a beautiful way of memorializing loved ones and memory making for the families. Years ago, a grant provided her team with a special stethoscope, capable of recording heart beats, but the need only grew and they realized they lacked the proper equipment and the audio space to produce these tracks. Because the recordings made are often in the last moment of a patient’s life, the team was seeking a way to record without environmental noise and voices. A sound booth was also requested so that custom music could be recorded for memorial services. Today they have over 50 heartbeat songs to date and have had the ultimate privilege of providing this memory for families that span the hospital, from patient rooms, emergency rooms, surgery, and even family waiting areas.
At Spurrier Group we are blessed with business success that also gives us the privilege to support the music therapy team as well as the patients they serve. Hearts were full as we sent our gift knowing that top-of-the-line equipment like a new computer, microphones, headphones, recording tools and sound booth could all be purchased and put to use immediately. Custom musical recordings including end-of-life situations and co-created therapeutic projects with patients who may be admitted long term is what the healing power of music therapy is all about. For patients and their loved ones, the Arts in Healthcare program is bringing comfort and healing losses…and we think that cost is priceless.