Yamaha Donates Keyboards to Support Mission of Mercy Ships Sailing Hospitals
Often out to sea for up to 10 months at a time, 50 children of the crew have access to two Yamaha keyboards to be used in a fully accredited ship-board classroom, now adding music education to their curriculum.
Worldwide, as many as five billion people lack access to safe, affordable surgical and anesthesia services and less than 6 percent of all operations are performed in the world’s poorest countries.
But since nearly 50 percent of these populations live within 100 miles of a coast, Mercy Ships are able to sail a modern floating hospital directly to the people most in need. They now stop in nearly 600 ports around the world, and since its inception in 1978, the group has performed more than 84,000 lifesaving and life-altering surgeries.
“When I learned about this group and the amazing work they do, I knew that we had to do something to help them with their program,” says David Jewell, marketing communications manager of the Customer Sales & Marketing Group, Yamaha Corporation of America.
That help came in the form of two YPG235 keyboards to be used in a fully accredited ship-board classroom for the 50 children of the crew who are often out to sea for up to 10 months at a time. “The kids attend classes all week, and now music education has been added to their curriculum, something Yamaha has always strongly supported.”
On weekends, the crews’ children help out with therapy for patients recovering from surgery. Now, in addition to keeping them company and playing games, they will be able to entertain them with their newly learned musical skills.
When Jewell went to the shipping department to deliver the instruments, one of the warehouse workers exclaimed, “Oh, my! I just saw something about this group on television. I can’t believe that I am helping to do this—it makes me feel really good about working at Yamaha.”
“Mercy Ships is doing such great work,” Jewell says. Yamaha is happy to continue its support of music education and aid in these patients’ recoveries.”
About Mercy Ships
Mercy Ships is an international faith-based organization bringing hope and healing to the world’s forgotten poor. Marginalized populations continue to suffer due to a lack of trained healthcare providers, inadequate infrastructure, and disproportionate out-of-pocket healthcare costs. Mercy Ships programs offer holistic support to developing nations striving to make healthcare accessible for all. Since 1978, Mercy Ships delivered services to more than 2.56 million direct beneficiaries. The countries served by Mercy Ships are ranked as the poorest in the world by the United Nations Human Development Index. For more information visit http://www.mercyships.org
About Yamaha
Yamaha Corporation of America (YCA) is one of the largest subsidiaries of Yamaha Corporation, Japan and offers a full line of award-winning musical instruments, sound reinforcement, commercial installation and home entertainment products to the U.S. market. Products include: Yamaha acoustic, digital and hybrid pianos, portable keyboards, guitars, acoustic and electronic drums, band and orchestral instruments, marching percussion products, synthesizers, professional digital and analog audio equipment, Steinberg recording products and NEXO commercial audio products, as well as AV receivers, amplifiers, MusicCast wireless multiroom audio systems, Blu-ray/CD players, earphones, headphones, home-theater-in-a-box systems, sound bars and its exclusive line of Digital Sound Projectors. YCA markets innovative, finely crafted technology and entertainment products and musical instruments targeted to the hobbyist, education, worship, music, professional audio installation and consumer markets.
