Last Monday, Musicians on Call (MOC) celebrated 20 years of spreading the healing power of music with a performance from Gavin DeGraw.
The celebration was an opportunity to recognize the organization’s many milestones of the past two decades and pay tribute to the many supporters who have been involved. Musicians on Call (MOC) is a nonprofit organization with a mission to bring live and recorded music to the bedsides of patients in healthcare facilities.
MOC began after Solomon and Tiwary helped organize a concert at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan in honor of loved ones they lost to cancer. Since 1999, Musicians On Call volunteer musicians have performed for over 775,000 patients, staff and caregivers across the country, spreading the healing power of music.
CEO Pete Griffin presented co founders Michael Solomon and Vivek Tiwary with Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as two gold guitars.
Dinner commenced at 7 PM and spirits were definitely high as money was being raised for the cause, which ended up being $500,000 by the end of the night.
After the awards were presented, the night featured special performances by long-time MOC supporters multi-platinum singer/songwriter Gavin DeGraw and singer/songwriter and star of TV’s NASHVILLE Charles Esten.
In addition to the fantastic performances, MOC and Citi celebrated all of the female voliutneers, and called out their underrepresentaiton in the entertainment industry, specifically music. After, April Kry performed her own original music which had themes of self-acceptance and empowerment to women.
When the night concluded, everyone seemed pleased with the way the night had went, with $500,000 raised for a good cause and a recognition of the hard work of many in helping others.
MOC’s Bedside Performance Program brings live, in-room performances to patients undergoing treatment or unable to leave their beds; they add a dose of joy to life in a healthcare facility. They use music to promote and complement the healing process for patients, families, and caregivers. These one-on-one interactions between musician and patient have the powerful effect of restoring the happiness that often fades away in hospitals.
For more information on Musicians On Call visit musiciansoncall.org.
