Homer OPUS

We 💗 all things strings! Mark Your Calendar for Fireweed's Harvest Festival which will include all sorts of fun activities, including music by Fireweed Frescoes.

Thank you to our String Director, Abimael Melendez for directing this year's fantastic Spooky Strings concert and to the HYSOC students who performed so beautifully.

homeropus.org

Photo credit:

Spooky things can happen on Halloween, like us getting locked out of our original Instagram account. Please follow this new Instagram and stay up-to-date with all our happenings!!

https://www.instagram.com/homer_opus/

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Congratulations to our Top Three Pledgers in this year's Practice-A-Thon fundraiser, Judah Klann (Codas), Rubis Gervais (Scherzos), and Lev Meyers (Overture Strings). Recognized during the Spooky Strings community concert, each received treat tokens donated by Bubbles Soda Parlor and a custom cake created by Brie Drummond.

Thanks to their efforts, the efforts of all the students who participated, and everyone who donated in support of their practice times over the course of a couple of weeks, more than $1,200 was raised. These funds will support our year-round HYSOC (Homer Youth String Orchestra Club) programs.

Thank you Katie Klann and Mattea for organizing and all the teachers, parents and guardians for encouraging the students.

Photo credit: Christopher Kincaid,

Mittens & Music - Mr. Abimael will be at West Homer Elementary for rehearsals as usual today. Happy Snow Day!

What a treat to have the 3rd grade Chapman Eagle Ensemble join us at Spooky Strings this year for the first time! Thank you Christopher Kincaid for the gorgeous photographs.


RCKincaidPhoto.com

Thank you to everyone who helped to make this year's 3rd annual Spooky Strings concert such a success!

Directed by Abimael Melendez, students with Homer Youth String Orchestra Club, Violins in the Schools and Codas performed Halloween-themed music for an enthusiastic and packed house. This annual event is a seasonal celebration of our vibrant youth and adult music community. Thank you to Abimael for sharing his passion and knowledge, to our students for practicing and playing, their parents and guardians for their encouragement and efforts, and the community members (our largest audience to date!!) who came out to enjoy the performances, and those who donated refreshments and lent a hand. An extra special thank you to our major donors for their financial support.

More photos as well as videos to come.

SPOOKY STRINGS COMMUNITY HALLOWEEN CONCERT

Hocus Pocus, Homer OPUS presents our annual Spooky Strings community Halloween concert, a spirited afternoon of eerie melodies led by Maestro Abi and performed by new and returning ghouls and boo’s who are members of our Overture Strings, Scherzos and Codas programs.

Don’t be batty – come out and enjoy the student’s first public performance of the semester, Sunday, October 27, 4-5:30pm in a new location this year, the Homer High School Commons. Free, fun for all ages. Refreshments to follow. Halloween costumes encouraged.

SPOOKY STRING 3rd Annual Community Halloween Concert, Sunday, October 27

Join Us for Spooky Strings, our annual community Halloween concert that showcases students in their first public performance of the fall semester. Led by Maestro Abimael Melendez, students from our Homer Youth String Orchestra Club (HYSOC), including Overture Strings, Scherzos and Codas music programs have been having a great time making music together, preparing to entertain and delight you this weekend.

We hope you'll come out and support their efforts this Sunday, October 27, 4-5:30pm at the new location this year, the Homer High School Commons. This concert is free and fun for all ages with a full program of Halloween-themed music, awards to our top Practice-a-Thon pledgers*, and refreshments to follow. Halloween costumes encouraged!!

Homer OPUS believes that broad access to music education can change children’s lives and transform community. We’re a nonprofit organization that runs string-based music programs for youth ages kindergarten through 12th grade and adults in Homer and Anchor Point. Our programs serve approximately 250 kids each year and are free or low-cost, making music instruction-and the joy of music available to young people all across our community.

Spooky Strings takes a village and we’re grateful for ours, including volunteers providing refreshments and helping with set up and take down and HYSOC parent Brie Drummond for creating the cake prizes that will be presented and parent and Codas member, Katie Klann for helping to organize this year's Practice-a-Thon fundraiser.* An extra special thank you to everyone supporting our year-round efforts, including community members like you and our major supporters: Alaska State Council on the Arts, Anchor Point Foundation, Global Credit Union, Gary Thomas 100 Men Who Care, Homer Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Play USA, Rasmuson Foundation, and the Richard L. and Diane M. Block Foundation.

*Students have been collecting donation pledges and earning tickets for every day that they practice music. The top ticket earners will receive recognition and prizes during the concert, including custom-made cakes. Practice-a-Thon is fun for the kids and a fundraiser for our Homer Youth String Orchestra Club (HYSOC). Pledging remains open online through October 27 at https://app.99pledges.com/fund/hysoc. You can search for a student's first name to donate toward their practice time specifically either as a pledge or a flat rate. You can also choose to donate toward the HYSOC group goal in general.

Questions? Want to lend a hand at the event?
Email [email protected].

We hope to see you Sunday. Boo!

Sunday, October 27, 4-5:30pm
SPOOKY STRINGS COMMUNITY HALLOWEEN CONCERT

Hocus Pocus, Homer OPUS presents our annual Spooky Strings community Halloween concert, a spirited afternoon of eerie melodies led by Maestro Abi and performed by new and returning ghouls and boo’s who are members of our Overture Strings, Scherzos and Codas programs.

Don’t be batty – come out and enjoy the student’s first public performance of the semester, Sunday, October 27, 4-5:30pm in a new location this year, the Homer High School Commons. Free, fun for all ages. Refreshments to follow. Halloween costumes encouraged.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

Want to help out at our year round events and activities? Join one of our Fun Committees. Email [email protected] for more information.

Our upcoming Spooky Strings concert is the first public performance of the fall semester for our youth and adult students. They've been having a great time making music together in preparation and we hope you'll come out for this always-popular free and fun community event.

We're in need of a few volunteers to help make this event a success. If you'd be able to provide a refreshment and/or assist with set up and take down of the refreshments table, we'd sure appreciate the help! Please sign up online or by email by October 25:

Online - https://m.signupgenius.com/ #!/showSignUp/10C0A4FABAA2AA4FCC52-51552434-spooky

Email - [email protected].

Thank you!!

Spooky Strings, our annual community Halloween concert featuring students from our Overture Strings, Scherzos and Codas programs. Mark your calendars for this always popular spook-tacular event that showcases their first public performance of the semester.

Sunday, October 27, 4-5:30pm in a new location this year, the Homer High School Commons. Free, fun for all ages. Refreshments to follow. Halloween costumes encouraged.

HYSOC's annual Practice-a-Thon fundraiser is in full swing and runs through October 22. Students collect donation pledges and earn tickets for each day they practice music. The top ticket earners receive recognition and prizes, including custom-made cakes, during our Spooky Strings Concert at Homer High School on October 27.

Practice-A-Thon is both fun for the kids and a fundraiser for our Homer Youth String Orchestra Club programs. Pledge-based donations can be made toward a specific student's practice time through the site, 99Pledges. Last year we raised around $2,700. Our goal this year is to raise the same amount, or more!

Using this link, family, friends and community members can search for participants by first name and donate directly toward their individual goals. Pledges can be a flat-rate donation or a pledge of a specific dollar amount per day that the student practices and donations can be made on the site through October 27. https://app.99pledges.com/fund/hysoc

If you'd like to donate, but not pledge toward a specific participant, you can do so here - https://homeropus.org/donation-homeropus/

Thank you to HYSOC parent, Brie Drummond for creating cake prizes and parent and Codas member, Katie Klann for her assistance organizing this year's Practice-A-Thon.

Your support helps us nurture youth and adult music programs in our community. Thank you! For more about us, homeropus.org. For more information or questions specific to Practice-A-Thon and pledges and donations, contact Mattea at [email protected].

WELCOME NEW BOARD MEMBER

Mattea Peters is another recent addition to our Board of Directors. A School Counselor in five KPBSD schools, Mattea was born and raised in Homer, joined HYSOC on the violin in late elementary school and played with them until she graduated from Homer High in 2014. She continued her musical education through college orchestra and later on, looking for a way to continue her musical involvement, joined the Codas in 2023. Fueled by her own experiences, Mattea continues to be passionate about the importance of music in a child’s life and education.