Sounds of Hope Project is very proud of the latest CD, “Strings of Hope.”  The music has been described as a “massage for the ears” and “like going to the spa.”                                 The album contains music featuring harp, violin guitar and an Irish fiddles group.

Musicians are:                                                                                                                                  Harpists – Sarah Schwartz & Melanie Brown                                                                                      Violinists – Chin Kim & St. Gerda Moehler                                                                                          Guitarist – Robert Gruca                                                                                                                          Irish “Clash of the Titans” group – Alyssa Schreiber, violin;  Erica Tompkins,  violin/bochran;  Elizabeth Crowe, cello/banjo;  Georgeann Trpiano, guitar

Strings of Hope has been distributed to many area nursing homes and hospices.  If you know of a facility or person  that you think would benefit from having this CD, please contact:  soundsofhopeproj@aol.com  or call Mary Lou at 440 582 4350.

SOHP is hoping to produce a gospel CD next.

Please sign up for AmazonSmile so that Sounds of Hope Project can receive donations from your eligible Amazon purchases at no extra cost you. If you shop on Amazon, please go to smile.amazon.com and select Sounds of Hope Project from the list of participating charities. The AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the price of eligible purchases to Sounds of Hope Project. You will see eligible products marked “Eligible for AmazonSmile donation” on their product detail pages.

You pay nothing extra, and SOHP gets help with our mission.

If you’ve already signed up for AmazonSmile, you can change your charitable organization to Sounds of Hope Project by signing into smile.amazon.com, going to your account, and selecting the option to change your charity using the navigation at the top of the page.

Thanks for using this easy and painless way to help us bring hope to others!

Music therapists and activities directors using our CDs in hospitals, hospices, and nursing homes suggested a CD of all string music. We’ve been working on that for about a year and released Strings of Hope in December.

Strings of Hope features two harp therapists, Sarah Schwartz and Melanie Brown, a classical guitarist, Robert Gruca, two violinists, Chin Kim and Sr. Gerda Moehler, with accompanists David Oei and Carolyn Hansen, and an Irish fiddle group called “The Clash of the Tartans” whose members are Alyssa Schreiber, violin; Erica Tompkins violin/bochran, Elizabeth Crowe, cell/banjo, and GeorgeannTropiano, guitar

Sounds of Hope’s new CD will be Strings of Hope featuring string instruments. The CD will feature wonderfully talented performers: two harpists, an Irish string group, a classical guitarist, and two violinists. We began recording last week.

Feedback from nursing home and hospices using SOHP’s CDs suggested that string music would be a welcome addition to our CD repertoire. We look forward to launching this exciting new CD later this year.

Saint Albert the Great parish’s (North Royalton, Ohio) craft show in December gave Sounds of Hope Project a way to sell and donate music CDs during the holidays. We also met so many wonderful people! Thank you to all who purchased CDs and to those who stopped to talk to us. We know the donated CDs you made possible will comfort those who hear them.

Sounds of Hope Project continues to spread hope by donating CDs this summer to David Simpson Hospice House and Ames Family Hospice (both part of Hospice of the Western Reserve), Continuum Care Hospice, Crossroads Hospice Valley View, Holy Family Hospice, and Vitas Hospice/Forest Park Center.

In response our donation of CDs and CD players to Regina Health Center in Richfield, Ohio, SOHP received this thank you note for our gift of music:

Along with our residents, I bring our sincere thanks for your generous gift for our residents.

• The gift brings the world of music to those who may not have anything else to enjoy.
• The gift brings hours of entertainment to those who love music and like it as part of their everyday living.
• The gift brings comfort and peace as a resident begins the journey to eternal life.

Now you understand the reason for our deep gratitude along with the joy of experiencing the goodness and generosity of you good people!

Blessings –
Sister Donna Mikula
Director of Pastoral Care

We’ve all heard of “Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday” but have you heard of “Giving Tuesday?”

“Giving Tuesday” is a day, once a year, set aside for people everywhere to donate to a non-profit charity of their choice. A day of giving, not getting. A day of calmness and thinking of others, not beating down the doors of stores or websites.

There are so many worthy non-profits and individuals who need your help financially. Why not “give hope” this year to someone in need? Donate to the Sounds of Hope Project to give hope to a hospice, a nursing home or shut-in this holiday season.

Please consider participating in “Giving Tuesday,” this year celebrated on Dec. 2. Whether you donate to the Sounds of Hope Project or any other charity of your choosing, you will certainly be getting a wonderful gift of hope as you give hope to others.

Sounds of Hope Project (SOHP) has been giving hope via recorded music to people in need of spiritual and/or physical healing for 10 years. SOHP officially became a non-profit organization in 2004. Since then, SOHP has recorded CDs and distributed them to shut-ins, those under hospice care, the hospitalized, and those in nursing homes.

Sounds of Hope Project is happy to welcome Lauren Haas Amanfoh to its board to guide the board with its development and business efforts, as well as marketing, promotion and funding.

Before Lauren Haas Amanfoh became the president of Royalton Music Center, she was answering the phones at age 3 and writing rental contracts at 10. She was the little girl who literally grew up in a music store—and now is continuing her grandfather’s and mother’s legacies of excellence into a third generation at Royalton Music Center.

A magna cum laude graduate of The Ohio State University, Lauren is a consummate musician and has performed professionally on French horn at Carnegie Hall, The Hollywood Bowl, Severance Hall and across Europe. She also plays piano and bass guitar. Lauren worked in New York City at Columbia Artists for some of the biggest names in the classical and dance world today and helped launch the careers of musicians through the Young Concert Artists series at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and The Kennedy Center prior to becoming the President of RMC. In 2009, this North Royalton High School valedictorian moved back home to help music makers young and old and expanded the family business once again. She was delighted to be named as Ohio’s only NAMM Top 100 Dealer 4 years running and receive a special nomination in the Best Clinics & Events category, as well.

“We care about our customers, the community, quality instruments and unparalleled education,” Lauren said. “It makes me happy every time someone discovers the joy of music.”