Winter 2009 eNews: InterNetzo
Rising to Service Before Being Called

The 44th President is creating a special group for it. Starbucks will give you a free cup of coffee if you pledge five hours toward it. What is this "it" that is sweeping the nation? Volunteerism, of course! While there have been many requests for giving one's time and talents in recent months, a group of wonderful people has been quietly volunteering for Walden long before it was in vogue. Whether you knew it or not, that beautiful photo book or rain-inspired T-shirt you received in the mail was designed and mailed by a volunteer. The event you attended in Dublin, New Hampshire, with jazz artist and Walden alumna Hilary Kole (who volunteered to perform this concert), was itself planned with the help of a volunteer. The packet of color-coordinated documents you received to help you prepare for one of Walden’s programs was prepared by…you guessed it, a volunteer. Their accomplishments could fill a tome by Ayn Rand or Tolkien, but it is their commitment to community that is the real story.

And while our community is full of volunteers who deserve recognition, in 2008, several individuals were key parts of Walden’s successes – behind the scenes: Marshall Bessières, Sarah Summar, Elaine Bishop, and Rainer Hammer.

“I have always loved photography,” says Marshall. “Even as a child I was thinking about composition in photographs. When I first started teaching at Walden, I took a few pictures and put them up on the web.” That was in 2001, when online photo sharing was still a budding idea. He continues, “Leo [Wanenchak] was the resident volunteer photographer at the time. He is great at taking fun photos that are uplifting and often goofy. I wanted to capture the serious side of Walden...I wanted to capture people in the intensity of the moment.” Over the years his photographic style (and number of cameras) grew, and he began sharing his photos not just with fellow students and faculty, but with everyone. His photos now fill our brochures, accompany press articles, add faces to newsletters, and are found almost anywhere Walden has a picture. The many hours of editing and cropping – and the use of the photos themselves – are all donated by Marshall. These extremely high quality photos, images that intimately capture the spirit of the summer, would be impossible without Marshall's generous donation. This photo of him is how many students, staff and faculty would picture him, from behind the camera.

Marshall’s volunteering for Walden extends beyond his photographic skills. Every week for three hours he visits the San Francisco office to help on a wide variety of projects. This weekly commitment is a direct result of his sense of community. “I feel very strongly that we should be giving to the progression of society in some way,” he states. “Walden is an incredible place that is doing something good for society. So if I can, I want to help.”

Marshall’s increasing commitment to volunteering formed over many years serving on faculty at the Young Musicians Program, but not all volunteers find Walden through their connection with Walden’s young musicians. “I first found out about Walden through the American Music Center opportunities listings. I was teaching aural skills at Vanderbilt University and the Teacher Training Institute sounded like a good professional development opportunity,” says Sarah Summar. Shortly after reading about the program, Sarah attended the summer intensive in Dublin, New Hampshire. In 2007, Sarah decided to leave Vanderbilt to pursue a DMA in composition at the University of North Texas. Having watched composers and performers form new music ensembles, only to struggle to keep the organizations running, she decided to apply for The Priddy Fellowship in Arts Leadership at UNT. This selective fellowship helps artists and arts educators develop organizational and leadership skills to become arts advocates and administrative leaders. Fellows take courses in arts management, conduct interviews with arts leaders and spend 400 hours in an internship with an arts organization. While her colleagues decided to intern at the Kennedy Center and other large arts organizations, she decided even before being accepted where to spend her time. “In my application to the fellowship I wrote about Walden as my choice for an internship. I was scheming to have my internship with Walden even before I approached Pat [Plude]!”

Over those 400+ hours, Sarah became an invaluable member of the San Francisco team. Her deft writing filled event invitations and press releases that went to hundreds of news outlets throughout the country and across the pond. Even though she was volunteering to fulfill her fellowship’s obligations, her work exceeded any requirements mandated by the University of North Texas. When asked why she chose Walden, she replies, “Simply, I really believe in what Walden does. I believe in how they approach music education and that creative expression should be at the heart of every musical lesson that any student receives.”

Being directly affected by experiences at Walden’s programs in New Hampshire has led Sarah, Marshall, and others like them to volunteer their time, but some of Walden’s volunteers have never even been to New Hampshire. Elaine Bishop is a San Francisco resident and music lover who for the last year has been coming to the Walden office for 2 hours every week. Over the last decade she has also volunteered for The San Francisco Girls Chorus and the San Francisco Zen Center. While searching the San Francisco Volunteer Center website for a new opportunity she found a small music festival. She said “The mission statement resonated with me and I like that the Walden School is small. It feels more personable.” Even though Elaine has never been to New Hampshire, the School’s small size has allowed her to directly see the impact of her work. If you have received an envelope or letter from Walden in the last year, chances are that Elaine helped get it to your mailbox.

The San Francisco office staff is grateful to have local residents like Elaine who support a program located on the other side of the country. We are also lucky to have a volunteer whose home is not even in the United States. Walden’s current intern, Rainer Hammer, traveled from his home in Germany in September to volunteer for Walden and two other Bay Area arts organizations. With a background in architecture administration and business, he has quickly become a valuable collaborator. As his knowledge of Walden has grown, so has his respect for and interest in Walden. “For the most part, in Germany, summer camp is for parents to send kids away. It is a vacation camp. This [Walden] is a real education camp. It provides kids with opportunities to enhance their skills.”

Both Elaine and Rainer have given their time to programs and people who they have never seen. Yet their commitment to help Walden thrive is no less than that of Marshall or Sarah. It seems that what our volunteers share in giving to Walden is their generosity. They aren’t sharing their time and skill because the president told them to. Nor are they doing it for the coffee. They all articulate that their reward for volunteering for Walden is their sense that this organization is about more than just making music; it is about making the world a better place through music. Or as Sarah says, “Everyone involved with Walden seems to be doing it for the right reasons and it really shows.”

Indeed it does show, and it is demonstrated especially clearly in these four individuals who volunteer: to them we say a hearty thanks. Yours are the silent labors that ask for no personal reward but lead to mountain hikes and composers forums. Creativity has bloomed, participants have been able to compose their first works, teachers have found a new way to engage their students – because of your efforts. You – and many other volunteers – have helped not only to create these things, but build a community, and make the world a better place. From all of us at Walden, thank you.

Copyright 2007-2010, The Walden School, All Rights Reserved.

Marshall Bessières

Sarah Summar

Rainer Hammer