Ohio Town Youngsters Make Beautiful Music in Manhattan for the Red Cross

After severe thunderstorms and tornadoes devastated Columbus Grove, a town of 2,500 in central Ohio, earlier this year, residents who had received help from around the country—by way of the American Red Cross—wanted to “pass it forward” to those impacted by Superstorm Sandy.

The town’s musical ambassadors delivered that generosity. Before performing a concert in The Atrium at 590 Madison Ave. in New York City, the school’s music department presented a check for $4,250 to the American Red Cross disaster relief fund.

Every other year, the Columbus Grove band and choir, with a total of about 140 teenagers, travels out of state to perform. This year’s field trip to New York City was planned long before Sandy struck.

After seeing the destruction caused by Sandy in this area, the band’s booster club decided to dedicate any extra dollars to the Red Cross. The fundraising then became community-wide, with churches taking special donations and service clubs chipping in. In the end, the donation totaled almost $2 for every adult and child in Columbus Grove.

Chaperone Theresa Murray, whose daughter plays flute and piccolo in the band, has been involved with the fundraising for these trips before. She’s helped with sub sandwich sales, a home-and-garden event and a rock-a-thon when her older children were in the band.

This time, she said, “The response was more than we expected.”

“We hope this is good learning experience for the kids,” added Choir Director Carla Wynak, “that they’ll understand what it means to help others in need.”

After receiving an ovation from Red Crossers for their generosity, the kids turned the tables and applauded the Red Cross.