Katy’s Music Fund to Bring Power of Music to Medically Fragile Children at Providence Child Center

April. 24, 2008

PORTLAND, Ore.— Music can change a life.

One family of a medically fragile child knows that first hand – and that family has helped to endow a music fund at the Center for Medically Fragile Children (CMFC) at Providence Child Center. Katy’s Music Fund was created by the Sellers-Subocz family to honor their daughter, Katy, who has been a CMFC resident. Proceeds from the fund, currently at $25,000, will help provide musical experiences for the 58 children with severe disabilities and complex medical needs who call the center home.

“Whether it’s Raffi singing Baby Beluga, James Taylor and his guitar or country music, it all seems to animate my sister in a way that nothing else can,” said Emily Sellers-Subocz, Katy’s older sister. “Katy has never been able to speak, and like many of the kids here at the center, her communication with the world around her is limited. The one thing that has consistently been able to get through to her and put a smile on her face is the sound of music.” Katy, now 23, lived at the center until her 21st birthday.

“Those who have known Katy have seen ample evidence that music communicates directly with the spirit - without filtering, without examination and without the need for speech,” said Karen Santangelo, executive director of the Providence Child Center Foundation. “What Katy has taught us is that music is a universal language and it goes immediately to the heart. It makes the children’s lives happier and richer.”

Because Katy’s Music Fund is an endowed fund it will provide musical experiences for CMFC children in perpetuity, said Santangelo.

“As the Katy Music Fund continues to grow," she said, “we will be able to bring a variety of music-related programs, events and equipment to the child center –—from healing music therapy to live performances and even the opportunity to go on field trips to concerts and shows. The possibilities are endless.”

The fund is part of the larger goal of endowing the Center for Medically Fragile Children, so there will always to be a place for families to turn to for support, said Santangelo.