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Dear Friends of the CIM,
Usually we start the newsletter by zooming out and looking ahead to what we have in store for us in the coming months. I would like to take a moment to reflect back on January as the past weeks continue to show us the importance of cultivating and tending to our communities, through both the easy and the hard times.
As a community of immigrants from the Irish diaspora and beyond, it has been a heavy month for many of us. However, in the last month, I’ve witnessed firsthand the generosity, care, and strength of this community. Here are some ways you have shown up for each other:
- CJAC’s Youth Advisory Council mobilized in less than 48 hours pull off a food drive campaign in early January
- Volunteers stepping into new roles as door and lobby monitors
- Community members reaching out to each other to carpool to CIM
- 50 folks gathered at Ceol agus Craic (pictured above) on Jan 24th for workshops and a session in the Scanlan Music Hall.
With renewed strength and hopeful spirits, let’s look ahead to February.
Our creative instructors are busy collaborating on music for this year’s Éigse, A Musical Gaela. We hope you’ll be able to join us at the St. Paul Event Center on February 28th for a night of great music, food, and fundraising. Help us celebrate the twenty years behind us and look ahead to the next twenty, ensuring CIM can continue teaching Irish traditional music through accessible lessons and group classes, presenting the Minnesota Irish Music Weekend, and running our instrument rental program with more than 65 instruments - all out of our beautiful leased space at The Celtic Junction Arts Center.
It will be a who’s who of the Irish music scene - you won’t want to miss it!
Meanwhile, our Spring term is off to a great start with 275 students enrolled! From adult group classes to youth ensembles to private lessons, CIM’s hallways and classrooms are bursting with music and learning. Our adult and youth ensembles are preparing for St. Patrick’s day performances at the Irish Arts Minnesota’s Landmark Center festivities as well as in the broader community - keep an eye on our event calendar to see what’s on.
I look forward to seeing you at Éigse!
Norah Rendell
Executive Artistic Director
Center for Irish Music
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