Friendship Circle Band

2019 - Present

In 2019 during my time as Community Engagement Specialist at Mind&Melody, we had the idea to bring a band concept to the Friendship Circle of Miami, an organization that brings programming to individuals, youth and adults, with developmental disabilities.

This program is all about creating a fun, collaborative environment focusing on participants’ strengths and providing opportunities for them to try new things. I still lead this group to this day, teaching participants to play the ukuele, keyboards, and percussion using a color coded system our team came up with, and practicing playing songs as a band. After almost 5 years of leading this group I’ve cultivated a sense of community around the band and the music programs at the Friendship Circle. The success of the first band program led to another weekend engagement program, a social music program for children under 10, and the addition of a second band for adults.