By Susan Cornell, Special to the Times:
Five local teens are among the 17 finalists chosen to participate in the live
finals audition and concert for the 2009 Voices For Hope Scholarship for
Community Outreach through music.
Voices for Hope is a community outreach and public education program of
Mystic-based Local United Network to Combat Hunger (LUNCH), a mix of arts,
education, and outreach encouraging kids to use their talent to produce positive
social actions. The winner will receive a $500 scholarship and the opportunity
for professional recording and performance.
“The finalists, from as far as New York and New Jersey, will audition live at
the East Hartford Community Cultural Center on Saturday, April 4, and then
perform together in the evening with LUNCH in a Harry Chapin tribute concert to
benefit programs for kids with special needs,” explains Bill Pere, LUNCH’s
founder and
executive director.
The local finalists are Elizabeth Brayman, 14, and Ellen Petersen, 15,
Mystic; Mackenzie Brayman, 12, North Stonington; Julia Burgos, 16, Stonington;
and Paulo Rouquayrol, 17, Ledyard.
Hopeful 11- to 19-year-old singers from all over Connecticut, Massachusetts,
Rhode Island, New York, and New Jersey submitted application packages to Voices
for Hope, now in its third year.
While Pere has never met most of the finalists, he commented, “I certainly
look forward to meeting them all on April 4. Of the three local finalists whom I
have met previously [Julia, Ellen, and Elizabeth], I know that they are all
exemplary students, and more important, exemplary citizens who give us hope for
a bright future.”
In the submission package, each contestant described their motivations for
participating in the program. LUNCH co-founder, recording artist, and vocal
educator Kay Pere said, “The contestants are all very
inspiring and articulate. They have a fresh attitude, and give us all hope for
the future.”
Mackenzie Brayman thinks the competition will be a “neat experience.” Said
Brayman, “I’m so excited because it’s my first competition where it’s just me
singing.”
After Brayman’s mother researched the program online and told her daughter
about it, “I decided it was a really great program because it’s singing for
people with special needs, and I think that’s just wonderful and decided it
would be something really fun to do,” Mackenzie said.
Paulo Rouquayrol decided to participate because he “saw in them the caring
nature that I wish every human being would possess.” He added, “When I hear
about a program that is doing good for our society, I always try to help out and
it just happened that I could do so with my biggest passion, singing. I am
always looking for ways to help my community and this was one more thing to add
to my list. Bill Pere is a great man and he has a great heart, and I am honored
that I can work with him.”
Elizabeth Brayman said she is both “extremely excited and somewhat nervous to
audition in the finals for Voices For Hope on April 4.” She decided to get
involved “because Special Voices and LUNCH are incredible organizations that
exist only to help people in need and I would love to be a spokesperson for
that,” said Brayman, adding, “I think that by having a spokesperson between the
ages of 11 and 19 the younger population will pay more attention to helping
other people, and personally I think that’s a great concept!”
Previous winners have performed at the Bushnell, the Granite Theater, and
Shubert Theater. And, under the Peres’ guidance, previous winners have released
individual recordings for distribution through iTunes. Last year’s second and
place local winners, Samantha and Stefanie Schaufler of Westerly, released their
own CDs.
Of the four songs recorded and released by VFH winners, Bill Pere wrote three
(“SASS,” “The Dream Held in Your Eyes,” and “Jump Start”), and Kay Pere co-wrote
one (“Angels on Horseback”). Bill did the production and coaching sessions for
the three he wrote, and Kay and Bill both worked with vocalist Julie Lavery of
Massachusetts on “Angels on Horseback.”
“After this year’s winner is determined we will record a couple of additional
songs and release a whole VFH CD,” he said.
