This past year has been one of the most exciting ever for Lost Voices. During 2022 we accomplished three Lost Voices interventions at Methodist Children’s Home Society (MCHS) in Redford Township, two at Vista Maria in Dearborn Heights, and three at Wedgwood Christian Services in Grand Rapids. This means that our teams were in touch with more kids in a single year than ever before.
At MCHS the boys were brimming with enthusiasm, and we wrote some very cool songs. This was our first full year with the guys, and the vibe was great but very different from some of our past groups in other facilities. Our October session turned into a fun Halloween extravaganza, although the songs also featured underlying exploration of their deeper thoughts and feelings. Two of the boys have guitars that they are learning to play, and some of the others are interested as well, so we are exploring funding and logistics to provide guitar lessons there during 2023.
2022 was our fourth year of working with the girls in the residential portion of the Manasseh Project at Wedgwood Christian Services. This wonderful facility nurtures the creativity of the youth in many ways, and they are strong advocates for the Lost Voices program. We work with a small team in a setting deeply integrated with the living situation of the youth, and get an outpouring of beautiful and soul-searching music working with them. Their final concert is held in a fantastic chapel on campus, and it is always a hit.
Vista Maria is like home to us, and we had two great sessions there. One of the girls had worked with us virtually during Covid at a different facility, which introduced a different and very cool dynamic to the group. As always, the songs they wrote were sometimes beautiful, sometimes beautifully silly, and always deeply introspective. Here’s an example, called Forgotten Memories:
As we go into the new year, we have even more work scheduled with these wonderful kids. We’ll be at all the same facilities as this year, plus we’ll be returning to Oakland Children’s village in Waterford to work with the boys and girls there. All of this success is due to the generosity of our wonderful supporters. Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, and have a wonderful new year!
