Sigma Alpha Iota

PAN PIPES • SPRING 2018 • sai-national.org 24 in the community as well as among the Chief 's friends on social media. Enter Ms. Christine Bruns and the amazing people from Sigma Alpha Iota Philanthropies, Inc. Christine read a post looking for help in raising funds to purchase an electric piano and perhaps some concert folders for the new chorus and jumped into action. Immediately, she started a gofundme.com drive for some starter money and connected Rota High School with Ms. Susan Christopher, Director of Sigma Alpha Iota Philanthropies Inc.'s People-To-People project, and work began to resource a new piano free of charge to the school. Now living on such a remote Pacific island poses many challenges. For the residents living here, something as simple as a trip to a grocery store takes chartering a plane from Rota to either Guam or Saipan, then dealing with customs and air cargo companies just to get a gallon of ice cream into your refrigerator. Finding a company willing to ship a piano across the waves to the island took months! Eventually, we partnered with a furniture outlet on the island of Guam to special order a Yamaha DGX660B electric piano. Another wonderful company, Star Marianas Air, allowed us to fly the instrument over to Rota in a small Piper 8 seat plane to end the journey. For those reading this story, you may wonder how much impact something as simple as a piano can have on a whole community. ere has been no music education on our island in decades. No classes for elementary school students. No concerts or marching band or even an awareness of the history of the music they listen to every day on the radio. With the onset of the RHI Chorus, there is now talk of hiring full-time music teachers (Chief Parenteau already has a full schedule of JROTC courses) to round out curriculum for elementary and middle school students. [On a side note, if anyone out there is interested in a true Adventure, take a look at the Commonwealth of Northern Marianas Islands Public Schools website. We are desperate for educators to come to Paradise to teach and enrich our communities through diversity.] So now, a tiny Pacific high school has a music program thanks to Sigma Alpha Iota Philanthropies, Inc. and their 'People-to-People' project. And the results are already being seen. On the very first performance of the RHI Chorus, the talented young people were awarded the Bronze medal at the 2018 Timon Bay Music Festival in Guam. While touring the island, LT Governor Raymond Tenorio issued a special invitation to Rota students welcoming them not only to Guam for their first concert but to speak to the kids about the power of music to inspire and change lives. To prove his point, he talked about his own experience with music education, sang a few of his favorite Lionel Richie tunes, and charted the course that led from the discipline and dedication he learned from music educators all the way to his seat as LT. Governor. Currently, the chorus is becoming a central player in the cultural life here on Rota Island. With an average of 2-5 requests each month, the chorus hosts public concerts, participates in festival competition regionally, provides music for local civic and government ceremonies, and performs at local elementary schools which now are planning concerts of their own featuring local musicians and exploration of the rich musical heritage of the islands. All of this success, in less than four months as an officially recognized school choir, and much of the thanks goes to Sigma Alpha Iota Philanthropies. On behalf of Ms. Denise "Tanya" King and every student at Dr. Rita H. Inos Jr/Sr High School I would like to extend my gratitude to Ms. Christine Bruns, Ms. Susan Christopher, and Executive Director Ruth Sieber Johnson who have made this all possible. Your work for charity based in music changes lives and we here on the Island of "Luta" are forever grateful for the opportunities you have provided for our children. — Joseph Parenteau, Chief Warrant Officer (Retired) PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE At top, Guam Lieutenant Governor Ray Tenorio (center) meets with Rota High School Choral Students on their historic first performance. Above, Dr. Rita H. Inos Junior/Senior High School takes the Bronze Award at their first performance at Guam's Timon Bay Music Festival in 2018.

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