DeKalb, Sandwich school districts among grant recipients for music education

SYCAMORE – The DeKalb County Community Foundation recently awarded $116,100 in Farny R. Wurlitzer Foundation Fund Grants to support music education for 26 nonprofits in DeKalb County and the region.

“We are honored to be a recipient of a Wurlitzer Grant. The grant supports the purchase of a large audio rack, wireless receivers, bodypacks, and microphones,” said Sandwich High School Band Director Justin Heinekamp in a news release. “The upgraded equipment allows us to streamline our current setup, creates a more professional experience for students, boosts audio range for attendees, and instills more confidence in performers with reliable equipment. Thank you to the Community Foundation for supporting musical excellence in our schools through Farny R. Wurlitzer Foundation Fund Grants!”

DeKalb County recipients:

• DeKalb Public Library – $900 to support a public steel pan concert
• Northern Illinois University Community School of the Arts – $3,000 to provide need-based scholarships for families in DeKalb County area communities
• DeKalb School District 428 – to purchase sound equipment for the high school percussion program
• Kishwaukee Symphony Orchestra – $12,500 to support concerts, clinics, and musical instruments for local students in need
• Children’s Community Theatre – $4,000 to support a youth summer theater camp
• Sandwich School District 430 – $10,000 to purchase audio equipment for school performances
• Sycamore Music Boosters – $4,000 to purchase ukeleles for elementary school students
• Cor Cantiamo – $6,800 to support a music education outreach program for high school students

The Wurlitzer Company was one of the largest musical instrument companies in the United States, with a primary manufacturing location in DeKalb. The Farny R. Wurlitzer Foundation was established in the 1940s and became a Fund of the Community Foundation in 2012. Today, the Farny R. Wurlitzer Foundation Fund Grant is one of several grantmaking programs at the Community Foundation.

Donations to any Fund at the Community Foundation can be made online at dekalbccf.org/donate or by mail to the DeKalb County Community Foundation, 475 DeKalb Ave., Sycamore.

For questions or additional information, contact grants@dekalbccf.org. For questions or inquiries about the Farny R. Wurlitzer Foundation Fund Grant, contact the fund’s Board of Advisors Chairperson George Buck at george@dekalbccf.org.