SCAI News

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Contact:  Danielle Woerner, sunrisecountyarts@gmail.com

“SING INTO JOY,” NEW ONLINE INITIATIVE OF SUNRISE COUNTY ARTS INSTITUTE,

RECEIVES GRANT FROM OLYMPIAN JAIME KOMER’S “HAPPY VIBES” FUND

MILBRIDGE, ME, October 2020—This spring, Milbridge artist and entrepreneuse Danielle Woerner envisioned a way to do something positive about the effects of the COVID-19 quarantining that descended in mid-March.  It’s called "Sing into Joy: Singing as Your Path to Wellness." 

“I saw people deeply concerned about their health, especially their breathing,” says Woerner, an internationally recognized singer, voice teacher and writer, and the President and Co-Founder of the Sunrise County Arts Institute (SCAI) in Milbridge. “Almost everyone was becoming withdrawn, anxious and depressed because of all the losses,” she adds. “They missed each other, they missed their normal activities—and they missed the arts.  We all still do.”

Knowing that the elements of good singing also contribute overall to singers’ physical, emotional, mental and spiritual health, she developed this new SCAI initiative applicable to anyone.  Through a combination of free and paid offerings, including private lessons, workshops, and events for groups from corporations to colleges to churches, Sing into Joy offers a way for participants to keep connected and healthier through song, while staying safely at home and online.  

The new venture has already received special recognition, from the Happy Vibes Grant program founded by Olympic athlete and motivational speaker Jaime Komer.  The mini-grants, from $50 up to $500, are earmarked for “women-led, conscious, small businesses in need of financial support.”  SCAI received $311.  The program is funded by Komer’s Happy Vibes bracelet business and her public speaking appearances. 

“Our world is so much brighter with Danielle and organizations like Sing into Joy,” says Komer.  “We celebrate the empowering ripple effect Sing into Joy is creating and we are grateful to support with a Happy Vibes Grant.” 

“The support from Jaime and Happy Vibes is such a valuable thing for us,” says Woerner, “both for the financial boost, and the acknowledgement that we’re doing something that can make a difference.”

Sing into Joy currently has its own website, https://singintojoy.org, a Facebook page and a private Facebook group, and regular blog posts.  Woerner is constantly expanding the scope of online activities, soon to include videos and a YouTube channel.  Later this month she’ll offer two of her long-successful workshops online, to small Zoom groups: “Finding Your Voice,” and “Healing the Wounded Voice.” 

“It’s especially painful that during this pandemic, when we could most benefit from singing, singing together is considered dangerous and irresponsible, due to the transmission of those fine aerosolized droplets,” she says.  “But this intermission is a great opportunity to develop our skills, boost our spirits and develop a wider community.”

Woerner also gives an appreciative shout-out to the CEI Maine Women’s Business Center and the Sunrise County Economic Council.  “SCEC was on board right away in May, offering helpful weekly small-business workshops.  And CEI has provided sophisticated, highly personalized training resources, all for free, helping us shift our all-in-person work of the past into a new shape for the present and future.”

For more information about Sing into Joy or the upcoming workshops, contact Danielle Woerner through https://singintojoy.org, or call 207-[phone # redacted in blog to avoid online harvesting]

Happy Vibes can be reached through its website, https://www.jaimekomer.com, and welcomes applications for its grants.

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