UPDATE:

This campaign is FULLY FUNDED! To support schools that haven’t yet hit their goal, visit:

mhopus.org/adopt-a-school

With generous and transformative support from Eddie Van Halen over the years and now continuing through his son Wolfgang, The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation is pleased to announce that the Van Halen Family's $1,000 contribution, combined with donations from generous supporters across the country, has resulted in the success of this campaign.

"The Cumberland Gap High School Band often goes by the motto, 'When life deals you a lemon, make lemonade.' There have been many times when an instrument would break right before a performance, causing extreme anxiety not only for the student who played that instrument but also for the rest of the band. Two examples of our 'lemonade' moments were: the bari-saxophone ligature broke right before competing at our annual concert festival. The reed ended up being held together with a zip tie. The sousaphone's spit valve broke before a Friday night football game and had to be held together with a drywall nail and duct tape.

The quality of our instruments is poor because many are held together with tape or are very old. An instrument donation would make a tremendous impact on our music program here at Cumberland Gap High School. Our students would benefit from the donations by having dependable instruments and not having to worry that their instruments may fall apart during a performance. By having these donated instruments, students would even have the opportunity to take the instrument home to practice, thus helping the musical growth and strength of our program." -Jalinie Barnard, Band Director

Trombones, flutes, clarinets, trumpets, alto saxophones, a baritone saxophone, a marimba, and tubas are needed to replace instruments that are falling apart and can no longer be repaired, reduce sharing, and allow additional students to participate.

Schools participating in the Adopt A School campaign are qualified through MHOF’s vetting and eligibility process, giving donors confidence that their investment is protected and sustainable, impacting students for a minimum of 10 years (the lifespan of an instrument in a school setting.) Donations made to this school’s fundraising campaign go directly to The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation (MHOF). MHOF then purchases the specific instruments the school is in need of at a substantially discounted price and the instruments deliver directly to the school.

"This donation would provide a gateway for students to play their desired instrument because, in the past, we could not always give the student's chosen instrument, and they would have to settle for whatever instrument we had as an extra. Due to our district being 71% economically disadvantaged, many of our students cannot afford to rent instruments. Therefore, such a contribution would directly impact and benefit our program positively and support growth for the future." -Jalinie Barnard, Band Director

Donate today and help these students foster their love of music, every dollar counts!

To spread the word on social media or link to this page in your own fundraising efforts, use the links below! And to learn more about The Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation's Adopt A School campaign, visit mhopus.org/adopt-a-school or contact MHOF at info@mhopus.org or 818-762-4328.

[5% of donations are retained for JustGiving’s required service fee, MHOF retains an additional 10% to cover administrative costs associated with school vetting and granting of instruments.]