Todd Rundgren Fans Raise Funds for Youth Orchestra of the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans

NEW ORLEANS - May 10, 2013 - PRLog -- While he might be best recognized for songs like "Hello It's Me," "Can We Still Be Friends," and "Bang The Drum," Todd Rundgren is known by his fans for a deep social consciousness. "Compassion," "Healing," "Love Is The Answer," "Bag Lady," "Temporary Sanity," "Strike," and scores of his songs serve as a clarion call to action for social responsibility and activism.

To celebrate Rundgren's 65th birthday (June 22), several hundred of his diehard fans will gather for Toddstock 2 at Nottoway Plantation in White Castle, Louisiana for a week of celebration, music, and "Burning Man-style" activities. One of the activities will be a trip to New Orleans where Rundgren will visit with the children of the Youth Orchestra of the Lower Ninth Ward (http://www.yol9w.org).

In addition to the visit, fans are raising funds to present to the Orchestra as a special contribution in honor of Rundgren's birthday.They are also donating graphic arts services to create a new logo for the Orchestra, and will videotape the Rundgren visit for the Orchestra to use as a promotional resource for future fundraising.  

Rundgren is personally enthusiastic about supporting the Orchestra. Contributions can be made by visiting the website (http://www.shiningstill.com).

The Orchestra's Executive Director Laura Patterson says, "We are so excited about this partnership! Every dollar donated goes to paying teaching artist stipends, program support staff, buying snacks, and covering the cost of instrument repairs.  We have almost no overhead costs, no space rentals, no office supplies, etc.  (The office is at the back of my house.)  

"And just to give you a little more background on the kids, 100% of our students receive free or reduced lunch, most of them eat three meals a day at school.  The 9th Ward is such a low-income neighborhood that we don't even have to submit income reports to the food bank."

Rundgren is a strong supporter of young musicians, and has done residencies and lectures at Columbia College Chicago, Indiana University, DePaw University, and others. While these children are much younger than the university students Rundgren is accustomed to mentoring, their dedication to music against great odds is inspiring Rundgren and his fans to mobilize.

Since the Fund was formally announced on Rundgren Radio (http://www.rundgrenradio.com) on May 7, nearly $1000 has been raised for the Orchestra. A goal of at least $5000 is expected to be reached before Rundgren's visit to the Orchestra on June 19. Donations are welcome.

The Todd Rundgren Fan Family Compassion Fund was organized in 2011 to raise funds to support relief efforts surrounding the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. It is an Ad-Hoc group of Todd Fans who respond to special circumstances by coordinating fundraising initiatives as needed. This fund is completely and entirely volunteer fan-initiated and fan-administered. While Todd Rundgren is not in any way formally affiliated with the fund's activities, he does support the compassionate effort of his fans helping each other.

Photo:
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