Fun-raiser Story #432

April 1, 2008
Urbana, Illinois
by Mark Enslin

OK, we've got a band name (AIEOU, the As If Ensemble of Urbana), we've got a couple of instruments (banjo, oud, bassoon, xaphoon, clarinet, squeezebox, washboard), we've got a few songs (Balkan, klezmer, classical, Moondog, utopian/microtonal), we've got some guerrilla theater protest experience (at a city council meeting to advocate for Section 8 housing) ... hmm, maybe it's time we should play our first gig? Well, alright ... but how about a funraiser for Gesundheit? Ah, now you're talking ...

Luckily we found just the right venue: the Iron Post in Urbana books local bands giving them 100% of the door, and they happened to have an open slot during happy hour on April Fools Day. Perfect. The plan was simple: we'd play a couple of sets including Mozart's “Rondo a la Turca”, Moondog's round “Whats the most exciting thing about life? (it's L-O-V-E, it's love)”, a Bulgarian chorus, Jacob's 17-tone-to-the-octave “Resplendent Multiverse”, Braden keeping the beat with shaker and flippers, Mark plucking klezmer bass lines on oud, Anna and Kyra bearing witness with Kyra's deep blue “Some day I ain't gonna hurt anymore”, and a renaissance madrigal “Maria Dixit” with Beth's intro explaining how the text concerns a young woman called on to join a movement for social justice, and her answer.

And in between we'd tell people about the next phases of the Gesundheit project—that whatever was put in the hat going around would go towards building a school and clinic. Which when built will help the site in West Virginia function as a place for people to learn about the Gesundheit approach to the joy of service and promoting the health of individuals, families, communities and societies—and would be a step toward ultimately building the full model free silly hospital based on fun and friendship. We'd also bring costumes for the audience to put on.

People? Audience? It was surprisingly easy to get a handsome crowd to show up—a fun band for a good, fun cause. Sure the audience included friends and family of the band, but also a nursing student, local doctor, a visiting harpist from LA cleared time in their schedules to support a fledgling band, fledging project, fledgling world.

That put us $216 closer toward the goal. What about fun-raising story #433? Anybody?

Inventor and His Invented Musical Instrument Raise Hundreds for Gesundheit

December 28, 2007
Virginia Beach

On December 27 and 28, Jacob Barton presented four house concerts at his family's home in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The concerts featured wackily wonderful arrangements of Christmas and Hanukkah tunes on the Udderbot, a new musical instrument that had its genesis on the Gesundheit land in West Virginia. Jacob, a music composition student, has been a participating in the School for Designing a Society since 2005.

"You Can Choose to Love Everybody Today" - 400 gather for Ojai talk and FUN-raiser

November 1, 2007
California

In Ojai California. Trudy Huberman-Frohlich of Motherpod Productions organized a fundraiser for the Patch Adams Teaching Center and Clinic that brought in $24,000. Trudy organized this terrific fundraiser because of the effects of Patch's work on her own life.

400 gathered under the trees of the local school to hear Patch call for a "love revolution."
Adams stressed the need for a new health care model, which the Teaching Center and Clinic plans to proliferate. He said he hears regularly from weeping parents who say he is their last hope because they can't afford insurance to pay for their sick child's care. The Patch Adams Teaching Center and Clinic will provide a base of organizing for universal health care in the U.S. while working on redesigning the care relationship between medical professionals and patients.

Blues Cruise in Maryland Floats Health Care Reform

October 20, 2007
Maryland

Gesundheit Board member Kathleen Wallace raised the fun factor aboard the Dorothy Megan, an old fashioned paddle boat off the coast of Maryland on October 20th, 2007. Hundreds gathered for this "Blues Cruise for Health Care" featuring the band Blues Deville, a silent auction, and raffle. Ms. Wallace, a Coronary Care Nurse, reached out to co-workers who helped assist with the Fun-raiser. Attendees got to hear about the past and future of the Gesundheit Institute and how they can help build the Patch Adams Teaching Center and Clinic.

Gesundheit Gala in Urbana Auctions Patch's Pants Right Off His Body

October 13th, 2007
Illinois

Patch Adams redefined dedication to the cause October 13th when he auctioned his pants right off his body at the Gesundheit Gala in Urbana, Illinois. Patch's pants, which have visited dozens of countries in his humanitarian clowning efforts, were auctioned to Adam, a young doctor, who clowns with his patients in Canada. The Gala ended a four day Health Care Design Intensive where over 150 Health Care Practitioners converged to rethink and redesign health care delivery systems.

Doc Hollywood Raises Fun with Kennesaw State University Pre-Medical Students

October 4, 2007
Atlanta, Georgia

The Kennesaw State University Premedical Chapter of the American Medical Student Association hosted a fun-raiser with Gesundheit Board Member Neil Shulman on October 4th in Altanta. Biology and Pre-Medical student Christa Lillig organized the event. Dr. Shulman, a professor at Emory University School of Medicine is also known as "Doc Hollywood" for the 1991 movie starring Michael J. Fox made about his life. Dr. Shulman lectures throughout the country demystifying medicine and promoting patient empowerment through medical literacy.