Seniors in Woolwich are in for a treat next week when the Kitchener Waterloo Symphony Orchestra comes to town.
On Mar. 2, seniors are invited to the Woolwich Memorial Centre in Elmira for a free concert, with symphony musicians playing some well-known music and a couple of new pieces the audience may not recognize.
Community Care Concepts executive director Cathy Harrington was approached by the K-W Symphony as it sought to extend their reach into the community. She says the partnership is perfect for the clientele CCC cares for.
“They really wanted to reach out to support seniors who may not have an opportunity to come and hear a symphony concert. It is a great experience,” she said. “We felt it was an opportunity to expose some of the senior members of our community to the symphony. It really is a win-win situation.”
Andrew Bennett, executive director of the K-W Symphony, says it is all part of bringing the symphony to those that can’t make it to Centre In The Square in Kitchener.
“It is great when people come to us, but they can’t always come to us. So, our job is to occasionally go to them,” he said. “When you think of the symphony, you think of performances on a major stage in front of thousands of people, and we love doing that, but we also see our role in the community as being much deeper and broader than that. For us, this is as important as anything else we do. We try to produce little moments of joy in places where it might be harder to achieve that.”
Harrington says the concert is geared towards the seniors in Woolwich who love a good concert and want to get out of the house and see some friendly faces. There are some people who just can’t make it out of town on their own. There may also be some other barriers for music lovers.
“Part of the challenge is the mobility issues, but sometimes it can also be difficult if finances are limited. Some people need to make tough choices about how to spend their money,” she said. “In other cases, individuals are isolated, and it could be difficult to go to the symphony, particularly if they don’t have someone else to go with them.”
The afternoon begins at 2 p.m. with a social hour and refreshments before the performers take the stage at 3 p.m.
“It is not quite a full symphony orchestra, but it is a significant symphony orchestra. It is what we would call a proper orchestra,” said Bennett.
Community Care Concepts asks that anyone who is interested in joining the afternoon event register ahead of time. The event is free, but there is limited space available. To register, call 519-664-1900.
