VH1 Gives Northside School $30K Music-Education Gift

By Charne Graham Fri., Sep. 16 2011 at 12:00 PM

Categories: Only In Houston

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Photos by Charne Graham

Reik and Roosevelt's Quinby Hernandez (center) have a jam.

VH1's Save the Music Foundation and Energizer have teamed up to make a difference in Houston's Theodore Roosevelt elementary school. Thursday morning, the two companies gave the Northside school a $30,000 check to help restore the students' music programs.

Roosevelt fifth-graders received an even bigger surprise when their music classroom was filled with brand-spanking-new keyboards for them to express themselves musically with. The school already has a choir, and hopes to start a piano ensemble with the new gear.

"The VH1 Save the Music Foundation has been around since 1997, and has restored music education in over 1,700 schools throughout the country," Paul Cothran, the foundation's Executive Director, said.

Save the Music Executive Director Paul Cothran

To help celebrate this special day, Grammy-winning Latin pop group Reik helped break in Roosevelt's newly keyboard-outfitted lab with two songs. In the intimate setting, the group sat down to perform with acoustic guitars, and was amazed when they saw fifth-grader Quindy Hernandez play her rendition of Katrina and the Waves' hit "Walking on Sunshine."

The admiration was mutual. "When I found out that Reik was coming to our school, I felt really excited and couldn't believe it at first," Hernandez said.

Another special guest in the classroom was the Energizer bunny. The fifth-graders fell in love with the giant pink rabbit as he danced and swayed along with the music. This year Energizer has donated $250,000 to help revitalize the music programs at eight schools across the country.

The students also performed and sang "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" on the spot, after one guest asked if anyone knew how to sing. Each had appreciative smiles on their faces and a glow in their eyes that showed their hopeful excitement to learn more about music.

Thursday's special guest

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