Musicares Foundation
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® 1 MusiCares Foundation Community Services Report 2007 Our Mission Established in 1989 by MusiCares also focuses the The Recording Academy®, resources and attention of MusiCares® provides a safety the music industry on human net of critical assistance for service issues that directly music people in times of impact the health and welfare need. MusiCares’ services of the music community. and resources cover a wide musicares.com range of financial, medical and personal emergencies, and each case is treated with integrity and confidentiality. “Twenty-eight days ago I was in the darkest place anyone could ever imagine. You gave me a chance to find the thing I so desperately needed to find and that was hope!” – MusiCares client 2 Emergency Financial Assistance The MusiCares Emergency for hurricane relief, resulting in a Financial Assistance Program distribution total of $2,777,653. provides funds for basic living and The program is open to individuals medical expenses to music people in who are able to document at least five crisis. In addition to direct financial years of employment in the music aid, MusiCares routinely negotiates industry and/or credited contribu- clients’ medical bills and often tion to six commercially released reduces them by as much as 50 recordings or videos, and those who percent, thereby lessening financial can demonstrate proof of need. In and emotional burdens on clients. addition to financial assistance, This fiscal year, MusiCares has MusiCares provides hundreds of provided hope and relief for referrals to other cooperative organi- approximately 1,000 music people zations and agencies. MusiCares’ through our financial assistance Health and Human Services staff and addiction recovery services. collaborates regularly with entertain- “My wife and I are so deeply grateful for the grant This includes nearly 700 financial ment assistance organizations you gave us to help with the medical expenses assistance clients and 241 addiction throughout the country in order to incurred since my diagnosis with leukemia. One of recovery clients. more thoroughly meet the emergency financial needs of our clients. The statistics comparing dollars the many gifts that has come out of my illness has Partnering and referral organizations disbursed for the same period been that I found MusiCares. You are providing an include the Actors’ Fund of America, tell a similar story. During fiscal the Jazz Foundation of America, the incredible service and support when artists need year 2007, MusiCares’ totals Musicians’ Foundation, the Rhythm it the most. Everyone I spoke with at MusiCares again reflected an increase in & Blues Foundation, the Society of assistance distributed for emergency was very loving and understanding. I want to pay Singers, Sweet Relief, and many others. it forward; please accept my donation to help financial assistance and addiction recovery services. Totals included musicares.com another struggling artist.” $1,527,194 for financial – MusiCares client assistance, $881,061 for addiction recovery, in addition to $369,398 3 Emergency Financial Assistance “I don’t know what I would have done without the Tracy is an upright bass player living in the South, who help from MusiCares. It has literally saved my life. was in a serious car accident. Lucky for her, she was wearing her seatbelt and was not seriously injured. My employer of five years dropped my name from Not so lucky was her beloved $4,000 upright bass his rolodex after my accident. However, friends I which was destroyed in the crash, leaving her without have made over the years as a recording engineer an instrument or a way to make a living; and, her car insurance did not cover damage to the contents of the came forward in ways I never expected, especially, car. She applied to MusiCares for assistance and received everyone at MusiCares. I am honored to be a partial support, along with a referral to a partner member of the music community, and I can think of organization for a grant that combined to replace her lost instrument. no other profession that would have acted with the kind of compassion and generosity that you did. Once again, I say thank you!” – MusiCares client We are on target for another dental clinics willing to provide landmark year at MusiCares in services for free or on a sliding- MusiCares covered living expenses for several months fiscal2008 . If the current trend scale basis. At industry health fairs for the client above. This assistance allowed him to continues, we will again serve a – typically hosted in partnership focus on recovering rather than how he would pay his record number of clients and with large music conferences across rent and electricity bills. As an independent contractor, distribute a record number of the country – MusiCares provides his income stopped abruptly after his accident, and he grant funds through our programs. information to promote well-being wasn’t sure how he was going to pay any of his bills. MusiCares continuously evaluates and brings together health care His employer moved on and hired another engineer clients’ needs for relevant health and providers to offer onsite services to finish the current projects. This client had no idea wellness information and services. such as flu shots, hearing tests and what he was going to do until a friend told him In the past five years, this has led to medical screenings. the development of workshops on about MusiCares’ services. After several months of musicares.com rehabilitation and physical therapy, he is now working topics such as hepatitis C and vocal again and doing what he loves to do. He is also a health, as well as the cultivation of relationships with medical and wonderful advocate and referral source for MusiCares. 4 MusiCares MAP FundSM MusiCares realizes that it is high-quality addiction treatment “This client had grown up around rare for anyone to not be touched facilities across the country, skilled in some way by addiction. Some in dealing with addicted music the music industry. Her father was a may not struggle themselves, but professionals, help MusiCares assist songwriter and her mother was an they may have a family member clients nationwide. who suffers from the disease, a instrumentalist. She loved music and For members of the music industry, close friend, a colleague, an artist singing from a very young age. One day MusiCares provides addiction they manage, or perhaps even an recovery resources that include she had surgery that caused a tremendous employee. Acknowledging this fact, detoxification, rehabilitation, sober MusiCares has taken a much more amount of pain. She was prescribed pain living, psychiatric evaluation and proactive approach to marketing other services necessary to support medications and soon found that she was and providing services to music recovery efforts. We continuously industry individuals interested in taking more than the prescribed dose. Her evaluate and develop relationships addiction recovery services. with local treatment providers in use increased to the point where she was The MusiCares MAP FundSM has order to ensure that our clients are trying to get pills from friends and family become a leading force in the effort benefiting from the best available and going from doctor to doctor for more to address the problems of addiction treatment. With an increased focus in the music industry. This pool on addiction in society, MusiCares prescriptions. Her family had confronted of resources provides members is experiencing an increased demand her several times without success. They of the music community access to for its recovery resources and is addiction recovery treatment and continuing to provide access to its then reached out to MusiCares and sober living resources. Numerous programs for music people regardless we were able to connect them with an of their financial situation. interventionist and a treatment facility. The musicares.com client has been clean and sober for more than a year now and states that without our help, she would not be alive today.” — Addiction recovery specialist 5 Addiction Recovery Resources Web Site Expansion Safe Harbor Rooms The disease of addiction is one MusiCares also provides addiction of secrets, shame and hiding. In recovery support through its order to connect with those seeking MusiCares Safe Harbor Room®. confidential help or information MusiCares established its first Safe about addiction issues, MusiCares Harbor Room backstage at the 39th has substantially expanded our Web Annual GRAMMY® Awards telecast information about addiction and to provide a support system to artists recovery. A feature entitled “In and crew members facing addiction Their Own Words” provides video issues. Staffed by qualified chemical clips of prominent members of the dependency and intervention music industry speaking honestly specialists, MusiCares Safe Harbor about addiction and recovery. Rooms offer a support network The new Web site information to those in recovery while they are also features a “Warning Signs Of participating in the production of Dave Kushner (above right), Ozzy Addiction” section, which provides televised music shows and other major Osbourne (above left) and Slash (left) participated in a series of informational a checklist of common addictive music industry events. videos created by the MusiCares MAP behaviors and symptoms. Two Fund™ to recognize September as musicares.com National Addiction Recovery Month other sections, “Addiction Recovery and to address issues around addiction Programs” and “Addiction Recovery and recovery. Resources,” discuss other aspects of MusiCares’ outreach and list useful recovery resources. The launch of these new efforts occurred in September 2007 in conjunction with National Addiction Recovery Month. 6 Addiction Recovery Resources Aftercare Groups Groups are facilitated by qualified Aftercare Group One group session One of MusiCares MAP Fund’s addiction recovery specialists who Jam Sessions vital components has been the provide a safe environment in which A new component to our group per month is ongoing availability of our support clients can address recovery issues.