Success Stories
Since 2015, The Power of Song has benefited hundreds of students in Florida and California
1. Florida Youth Travel for First National Show
Part of the vision of The Power of Song Inc. is for youth to experience places and opportunities they never had. That effort began in February 2017, when The Power of Song’s partners, the Men in the Making African American and Latino male mentoring program with the St. Petersburg (Fla.) Police Department brought a group of mentors and young men from Florida to California for the first national production of Sounds of the Civil Rights Movement: The Power of Song in Pasadena, Calif. So it’s not just a field trip but a cultural exchange with youth participation.
For some of the young men who grew up in Florida, it was their first time ever seeing and standing on a mountain. Since The Power of Song began its national productions, the Men in the Making and police department have continued to send groups to participate.
In addition to its partners, The Power of Song has supported other youth so they, too, can have similar experiences. In one case, a young woman became so inspired from her work with The Power of Song that she now participates in international mission trips, including to Africa.
2. Adan Martinez: Bullied but Restored by Mentoring and Music
Among the great successes from The Power of Song’s programs has been Adan Martinez, a viola player who placed in the organization’s music contest and has performed in its productions. Adan had been bullied to the point of being beaten and suffering a concussion. His grades fell. And living in a single parent home with his mother proved difficult.
But through mentoring in Men in the Making and participation in music and
productions through The Power of Song, Adan said it all lifted him. Grammy Award-nominated jazz singer Kim Nalley, a regular part of The Power of Song’s productions, linked Adan with a Grammy Award-winning string player who provided him with free lessons via Skype. His grades improved and he has become player in symphonies in his community.
Adan has performed “Redemption Song” in the organization’s productions.
3. Music Contest Awards Exceeds $3,000
Jordan Bolds embodies the spirit of a leader. The student athlete and musician has excelled in much of what he has done. Even with all he feels inspired to pursue, he has attributed some of his broader opportunities to perform throughout the Tampa Bay area to The Power of Song Inc.
Jordan, a saxophone player, won 1st Place in The Power of Song Music Contest in 2017. He became a student judge in the contest for the 2018 music contest. The 2018 contest led to the milestone of more than $3,000 in cash prizes to students like Jordan.
The music contest includes cash prizes and trophies for the first, second and third place winners.
While he enjoyed the music and the exposure from The Power of Song productions that led to new requests for him to perform, he told audiences that the one the greatest benefits of participating with the organization was learning the history of his people. Jordan has been a participant in The Power of Song’s Sounds of the Civil Rights Movement: The Power of Song, which shares the history of the music of the movement.
