Granite Park Jr. High welcomes rock band

Benefit concert for the arts at Granite Park Jr.

Granite Park Jr. High School students received a rare treat on Oct. 6, a visit and a rock concert by the VanMarter Project, a rock band currently on a national tour promoting their new album, “Don’t Look Back.”

The band has committed to providing a benefit concert for a local school in each city they visit on their tour; Granite Park Jr. was their first stop.

All proceeds from the concert went to the school’s performing arts department, choir, band, dance and visual arts. Granite Park Jr. received $700 from the ticket and album sales from the evening.

“The event was awesome! I have never seen the kids so excited,” school counselor Whitney Watchman said. “You could hear, feel and see the excitement in the halls all day before the evening performance. Students had their binders, notebooks and shirts autographed. The band was nice enough to visit with the students during the day in their classrooms and the lunchroom. It was a positive experience for all involved.”

The VanMarter project is associated with the Empty Vessel Affiliate Artist, a nonprofit Grammy organization. Throughout the day, band members visited students in their classrooms to speak about the positive influence of music, the impact on their education and to remind them to never give up on their dreams. VanMarter Project also represents the Music Matters Project, which receives donations and musical instruments to provide music education, music appreciation and intervention for youth ages 6-18 in underserved and at-risk urban areas in America.

“One of my concerns while organizing the show was the fact that [the orchestra] didn't have many instruments to play,” Hydrus Media Publicist and former Granite Park substitute teacher Deann Shepherd said. “Summerhays Music actually donated the bows the students used to play their instruments during the concert. Many students who participated had an unforgettable experience, and I'll always remember one girl from choir who wants to be a singer when she grows up. Travis Swanson, the owner of Hydrus Media, the label VanMarter Project is signed to, took the time to meet with this girl after the show and listened to her audition a song she had written. The excitement on this girl's face as she left that night simply added to the experience as a whole.”

The VanMarter Project is planning its next benefit concert in Spokane, Wash.