ACM Lifting LivesTM is the charitable arm of the Academy of Country Music
dedicated to improving lives through the power of music. With the help of
country music artists, the music industry and other caring supporters, the
Academy is able to give back by funding a variety of amazing organizations that
are music-focused.
In addition to spontaneous and varied giving throughout the
year--such as through The Home Depot Humanitarian Award, partnering with the
Make-A-Wish Foundation and providing immediate financial assistance through our
Diane Holcomb Emergency Relief Fund-- ACM Lifting Lives has three official
annual giving opportunities. These
include the Lifting Lives Grant Cycle, the ACM Awards and the ACM Entertainer
of the Year Matching Gift.
Grant Cycle
Through Lifting Lives grants, we
fund music education and programs across the country that advance healing
through music, such as music therapy in schools and hospitals. Grant recipients have included:
-
Bridges Academy in Nashville -
music education programs
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Free Arts for Abused Children in Los Angeles - music and art therapy for victims of child abuse
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Holston Home in Middle
Tennessee - music education program for adopted and foster children
-
Lollipop Theatre Rhythm of Hope Program in Los Angeles and Nashville - artists visit hospitals and teach ill children how to express their feelings
through song
-
Mr. Holland's Opus in Los
Angeles - instruments and instrument repairs for two under-served schools
-
Children's Hospital Los Angeles in Los Angeles-personnel support for music therapy program, provided to patients and family free of charge.
-
Music National Service Initiative in Oakland, Calif. and the Bay Area - summer training program for music fellows who will teach in low-income
schools
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Musicians on Call in
Nashville - music therapy through artist visits at Bordeaux Assisted living Center and Alive Hospice
-
Peace thru Music in
Ventura, Calif. -purchase and repair of
instruments for children from financially challenged backgrounds
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Soldiers' Angels Nationwide - provide instruments to deployed and wounded Armed Forces members
-
Songs for Kids in Atlanta and
Los Angeles -live music performances in hospitals, specifically the "Kids Rock!" program at Children's
Hospital LA
-
The Art of Elysium in Los
Angeles -musical expressions program, providing music kits and interactive entertainment to hospitalized children
-
Vanderbilt Music Therapy Program in Nashville - full time music therapist for summer trauma patients
-
Vanderbilt Kennedy Center's Williams Syndrome Music
Camp in Nashville - scholarships and funding for a camp studying Williams Syndrome and
providing music therapy to kids in the form of performance and education
-
W.O. Smith Nashville Community Music School in Nashville - music education to underprivileged children, providing room and board
expenses for students at the Summer Music Camp
ACM Awards
The ACM Awards provide a fantastic platform for giving. At the 44th
Annual ACM Awards, the Academy launched Lifting Lives and acted as a
conduit to increase awareness of and funding for the Wounded Warrior Project, an
organization that aids wounded American troops.
Trace Adkins and the West Point Glee Club dedicated their performance of
"Til the Last Shot's Fired" to our troops, and all proceeds from downloads of
the performance through iTunes were donated to Wounded Warrior Project. In the first 48 hours following the telecast,
the video and song bundle of the performance was the #2 album on iTunes. Additionally, Wounded Warrior Project has
received almost $50,000 in direct contributions through its dedicated ACM
Lifting Lives donation page and from live audience viewers who made donations
on-site following the awards show.
Nearly a million viewers have watched Adkins' performance on
YouTube. We hope to raise funding and awareness in this manner through
the awards show and related media each year.
Entertainer of the Year Matching Gift
Carrie Underwood, the 2008 Entertainer of the Year,
approached ACM Lifting Lives about giving instruments to public schools in her
tiny home town of Checotah, Oklahoma. Lifting
Lives partnered with Carrie's C.A.T.S. Foundation to provide instruments and
vocal equipment that will help ensure the future of the school's music
program. Annually, Lifting Lives will present
a matching gift opportunity to the ACM Entertainer of the Year for any endeavor
that uplifts through the power of music.
More to Come
This year, the Academy is making
a nearly $1 million endowment to ACM Lifting Lives and has demonstrated that ACM
Lifting Lives has emerged as the top priority for all Academy activities.
To find out how you can become involved, donate to Lifting Lives or to receive additional information please email Erin Spahn, Director of ACM Lifting Lives at
erin@acmcountry.com.