Awesome Music Project launches auction to support mental wellness

It’s hard to ignore the positive benefits we get from music, from raising our spirits, getting rid of angst, inducing relaxation, assisting with communication to building self-esteem.

Awesome Music Project (AMP) co-founder Terry Stuart says their music programs have “sparked conversations that have led to better social integration, elevated mood and a new appreciation for the role music plays in mental wellness and mental health.”

Stuart says he’s seen first-hand the good that comes from music through AMP, the Canadian charity he helped create, which is dedicated to raising awareness and supporting research into music’s transformative impact on mental wellness and mental health.

“The impact that music and stories about music has had on our program participants has truly been remarkable,” he says.

AMP launched the Awesome Online Music Auction on World Mental Health Day to raise money to help provide music-focused mental wellness programs to communities across Canada. What better way to mark World Mental Health Day than to raise much-needed funds? asked AMP Executive Director Cori Ferguson.

Ferguson says that the organization has received an incredible line-up of donations from partners across the country, “and I think we’ve got something that will appeal to casual and hardcore music fans alike,” for the auction.

Auction items came pouring in. They include music trips, autographed collectibles, original photography prints, vinyl record packages, event tickets and a 15-minute Zoom call with musician and austronaut Cmdr. Chris Hadfield.

Featured auction items include:

  • A 15-minute Zoom conversation with Chris Hadfield, Colonel Astronaut (ret’d) and contributor to best-selling book The Awesome Music Project Canada: Songs of Hope and Happiness;
  • A trip for two to the 2023 Calgary Folk Festival (courtesy of WestJet, Marriott, The Calgary Folk Festival and Travel Alberta);
  • A visit to the set of the hit Canadian TV show Murdoch Mysteries with the show’s composer Rob Carli;
  • An original Gord Downie print from renowned Canadian rock photographer Richard Beland;
  • Tickets to see Sarah McLachlan at Casino Rama, plus a Sarah McLachlan merchandise package; and
  • Rush poster signed by all three members.

Additional items include tickets to see the Smashing Pumpkins and Jane’s Addiction in Toronto, an Awesome Music Hour corporate team building experience, three 10-album vinyl sets (rock, hip-hop and R&B), a signed poster and new album from Steven Page, an Alanis Morrisette “Jagged Little Pill” promotional package, and 10 Awesome Music Project gift bags containing an AMP T-shirt, socks, and a signed copy of best-selling book The Awesome Music Project Canada: Songs of Hope and Happiness

Funds raised through the Awesome Online Music Auction will support the expansion of two music and mental wellness programs: The Awesome Music Hour and the AMP4Life Book Club. Both programs use music to open up conversations about mental wellness and mental health. 

AMP co-founder Rob Carli says they’ve received items for the auction to likely raise enough funds to expand both programs by adding several new sites in early 2023.

Launched on October 10, 2022, the first-ever Awesome Online Music Auction runs until the last day of October.

by Cherryl Bird – Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Twitter @ladycbird | Instagram @cherrylbird

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