FireChild

History
FireChild began in November 2004 when several musicians from the Sacramento region approached Concerts4Charity about the lack of music education in public schools.  Understanding the importance of music education in the lives of children, Concerts4Charity immediately began to produce fundraisers, write grants, identify vendors who would provide instruments at a reduced rate, and had conversations with schools in the Sacramento region about introducing the FireChild music education project to their students.
 
Since the projects inception FireChild has taught over 300 children how to play music in several schools and at other venues throughout Sacramento.
 
Program Structure
Establishing a collaborative effort with community school districts our classes take place within one of the schools classrooms.   Depending on classroom space and availability the program takes place either during or after school for a semester with at least 20 hours of instruction.  It is one of our goals to keep class sizes to10-30 students allowing space for guest performances.

National, regional and local musicians are invited to perform for the class and share stories about how they became involved and what music has meant in their lives.

Currently, there are three classes running in the Rio Linda School District in Sacramento County. One set to start in the Sacramento Unified School District next year and one program that takes place in a midtown Sacramento venue throughout the summer.

The primary funding sources for these classes have been Concerts4Charity events that benefit the program. 

Mission

The mission of FireChild is to “ignite a child’s passion for music “by focusing the project primarily in schools that do not have a music education program.

Vision

Our vision is to implement this program in the Northern California region. Then we will extend this program to other regions throughout the country that C4C has a presence.

Need

Music education programs continue to be cut from school district budgets.