Abraham Lincoln High School

New CLSD Foundation Provides Band Instruments to San Jose School

JULY 30, 2008 – The Collateral Loan and Secondhand Dealers Foundation (CLSD Foundation; 501c(3) in process) announced that it has completed its first donation of musical instruments to Lincoln High School in San Jose, CA. CLSD Foundation is a recent development by the Collateral Loan and Secondhand Dealers Association to begin a statewide outreach program to its membership in an effort to collect and then furnish needy California schools grades K-12 with quality musical instruments.

CLSDA members are encouraged to donate musical instruments in good condition as charitable contributions through the association’s foundation.

According to CLSDA Board President Robert Verhoeff, Lincoln High School was an ideal candidate for the program. “The school recently had most of its band instruments stolen and had no funds to replace them,” he said. “It was fortunate that through our foundation we were able to rally the California pawn community to provide more than 24 quality instruments to the school.”

Lincoln High is the first school in the state to receive instruments through the foundation, which utilizes an extensive network of California pawnbrokers to donate a variety of instruments to the program. Lincoln High music teacher Kate Meyer said in all of her years of teaching this is the most extraordinary thing she has ever seen. “We are very grateful to the CLSD Foundation for its efforts.”

“Pawnbrokers are the front line for receiving musical instruments and are ideally suited to be the main thrust behind the success of this innovative foundation,” Verhoeff said. “As a result, the generosity of the California pawn community comes through to help schools in need. We see this as just the beginning of what can be accomplished through this foundation.”

CLSDA plans to unveil the foundation at its Annual Convention, Sept. 12-14, 2008, in Indian Wells, CA. Attendees are encouraged to bring donations of musical instruments to the convention. The Association will also announce various drop-off locations throughout the state.

For more information, contact
CLSDA Executive Director Kim Andosca
209-786-5115
209-786-5114

About CLSDA
For the past 52 years, the Collateral Loan and Secondhand Dealers Association (CLSDA) has been serving the pawn industry in California through programs, education, information and legislative advocacy.

The Importance of Music Education
Respondents of a recent Harris Poll cite skills they learned in music as helping them in their careers today. Seventy-two percent of adults with music education agree that it equips people to be better team players in their career and nearly six in ten agree that music education has influenced their creative problem solving skills. Many also agree music education provides a disciplined approach to problem solving, a sense of organization and prepares someone to manage the tasks of their job more successfully
Other studies show the value of music programs to our future generations:
• Students in top quality music programs scored 22 percent higher in English and 20 percent higher in math on standardized tests mandated by the No Child Left Behind Act (University of Kansas)

• In 2006, SAT takers with coursework in music performance scored 57 points higher on the verbal portion of the test and 43 points higher on the math portion (The College Board, Profile of College-Bound Seniors National Report for 2006)