***update as of jan 22nd!!!***

so you all are amazing - just wanted to throw that out there!  even just for coming to check out our project - THANK YOU!!

now, we initially were looking to bring this to one nursing home.  however, with the response so far, we want to see if we can raise enough this first go-round to bring it to three, which we feel will give us a really good start.

we are working out a good rate on the mp3 players, and for $2000 total, we should be able to pay all fees, taxes, shipping, etc and get enough players, over-the-ear headphones and wall adapter chargers for three homes...!

so new goal! $2000 in 14 days?!  

***update as of jan 13th!!!***

thank you to everyone supporting us so far!!!!  WE HAVE MADE OUR INITIAL TARGET!  and there are no words for how surprised and amazed and happy and thrilled we are at how fast and wonderful that was!!!!!  ...now the work begins on our side! ^_^

while we get the mp3 players ordered and loaded with music and work on putting all the perks together to go out, we wanted to remind everyone that this is just the beginning! this target was for the first home, but while the campaign is open, we will be continuing to raise funds to get us even further ahead - every penny we make above $800 is going towards the next home we will be bringing music to - and every penny above that goes to the next... 

thank you for your -continued- support!  we really can't do this without you!!!

***

it has never been a secret that music can lift people up, make them smile or even make them think of a time long since left among the dandelions growing in the grass along memory lane.

you probably have a song or two yourself that, all you need to do is play it, and you're back living that moment again - the notes carrying with them the scent of perfume from that dance or the heat of the sun during coachella or the way you held hands with one hand, the other on the steering wheel as you drove off into the night...

now imagine you are part of the tens of millions of elderly people who live in rest homes or nursing homes with various forms and stages of dementia, alzheimer's and general memory loss.

i could bombard you with links on the subject - but i will just leave these here for now:

stats on the number of elderly people: 
http://www.nia.nih.gov/health/publication/why-population-aging-matters-global-perspective/trend-3-rising-numbers-oldest-old

research on the medical impact of music on memories:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16717466

you are welcome to google this as much as you like - there is a plethora of information you can study on your own - you do not have to take our word for it!

but with that, the short version of our story is this:

we will provide custom-loaded mp3 players with over-the-ear headphones and wall-adapted chargers for the elderly residents of small nursing homes...for starters.

we are beginning with one home which houses the parents and grandparents of middle to lower income families.  this home has 30 beds and currently 22 residents, ranging from around 80 -101!  our goal is set to cover enough money for 25 sets of mp3 players, headphones and chargers and purchasing digital downloads as far as the distribution of the music goes.  we will be custom-loading the players for each resident.

this is not a charity - we have no charitable organization name, registration or tax-exempt status.

every penny over our goal that we raise will be put towards the next home we will be bringing this project to.  and with a projected 72 million elderly in america alone by 2030, we hope we can bring this to many, many, many rest homes, nursing homes and assisted living homes in the future - across the country and, who knows...maybe one day across the world.

we are starting this as a project to bring the gift of music and memories into these people's lives, and from there - who knows?  spin off into a youtube channel of short films showing the stories of some of the people we bring music to, make a film documenting the process - make it into an ever-creating platform of art <3

for now - we are starting with the music and mp3 players and chargers and headphones for this first home.

and from all of us, we thank you for even considering our project! <3 

and we look forward to sharing all of the rewards with you in return for your support...but more than anything we look forward to sharing the music, and for those who held up society the decades before us, give them some of themselves back. 

and as it's a little odd how the "team" is listed under team, here is the full music for memories team at this time:

koura linda
spacey ship
stevie brown
sarah daly
christopher harn
peppina pallijeff
kali thomas
brandy gore
debra lou
evan goodchild
brandon 'seabear' elrod
robin proi
christina regler
katie ann
jim mangum
sid mangum
emma wallace
marie bee
lexi scherr
andrew keeble
mottel zirkind

<3