Music has made a difference for Sol Adventurers, a non-profit organization committed to empowering young people even as they struggle with crippling diseases or face the challenges that come from growing up in homeless shelters in Los Angeles or orphanages in Jamaica.
The empowerment comes when the children discover their personal gifts and share them with the world, according to Roseanne Ware, founder of the group, which is known simply as Sol, which means sunshine in Spanish. The idea, Ware says, is to teach youths how to seek more hopeful destiny for themselves.
Ware has some experience on seeking hope amid hard times. Her own life took an unexpected twist four years ago after a vicious pit bull nearly proved fatal.
"I found strength and inner gifts from a near-death encounter," she says. "It came to me that I was supposed to be empowering those in need to discover their gifts and to follow that path to reach their full potential, mentoring and helping them to get the necessary resources to do so."
According to Ware, the name Sol Adventurers came to her from a line in the Bob Marley's song "Soul Rebel".
"It was a perfect fit because this is precisely what we are doing — adventuring into each youth's soul to help them find their gift," she says, adding that she drew strength and inspiration through the positive images of reggae music and the overarching influence of Marley's work.
The connection to reggae is one reason that Ware has extended the Sol Adventures program to rural Jamaica.
"Despite horrific conditions of poverty and violence, many inspirational artists such as Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Israel Vibrations and others were able to discover their gifts and share them with the world," she says.
Back at her home base, Sol Adventurers' is currently working on an LA Conservation Corp after-school program at Henry Clay Middle School in South Los Angeles. The six-week curriculum gives students hands-on, interactive sessions that encompass visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning style to enhance creativity through music, art, writing and movement. The objective is to teach students about African history and the impact it has on the global community. Music, basic gardening skills and the exploration of students' cultural roots all combine to help them unearth their gifts.
It's a big change for Ware, who attended Loyola University of Chicago and obtained a masters degree in clinical social work. She has worked in the social work and psychology field for 17 years, and she used to work for an elite list of clients enough resources to pursue just about any direction life.
Now Ware is dedicated to bringing new opportunities to individuals with far fewer options, counting on private donations, funding from local after-school programs, and fundraising activities to keep the program going. She says she's also working on a compilation CD of music to offer to donors in hopes of taking the organization's funding level to $250,000.
For more information email director@soladventurersfoundation.com.
More info:
Sol Adventurers
Sheannette Virtue is a writer for Carib Press.
Photos from Carib Press
Leave a comment