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Community Corner

Makin' Music Rockin' Rhythms Tunes into Community Needs; Collects Essential Items for Cradles to Crayons

Makin’ Music Rockin’ Rhythms Tunes into Community Needs; Collects Essential Items for Children In Need at Its Three Delaware County Locations for Cradles to Crayons

Kim Fink has been Makin’ Music, literally and figuratively, for the better part of 20 years – fulfilling a goal of making music her career and spreading love of music to kids.

Today, her business, Makin’ Music Rockin’ Rhythms, based in Media, is doing just that, exposing children of all ages to music through their fun and interactive classes. “But don’t be fooled by all the giggles and dancing,” Kim says, “there is some serious learning going on with all that fun.”

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Makin’ Music Rockin’ Rhythms is certainly introducing children, infants up to age 5, and some with special needs – thousands annually at the program’s nearly 20 locations in the tri-state area and Virginia and as far away as Texas – to the enjoyment of music.

Makin’ Music is also making itself heard throughout the community, with an active involvement in numerous local school and church programs, as a welcome presence in a wide range of community outreach activities, from the American Cancer Society to the Women's Center of Montgomery County, and including Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the Ronald McDonald House.

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But not too busy to do encore after encore for Cradles to Crayons, the Montgomery County-based organization that addresses the poverty faced by one in five children in the Greater Philadelphia region by collecting and providing new and nearly new daily essentials that disadvantaged children, birth through age 12, need to thrive.

Kim first learned about Cradles to Crayons last year when one of the Makin’ Music dads, Jeff Baxter, manager of Community Outreach at the nonprofit, began bringing his daughter to classes. “He let us know about Cradles to Crayons and the work it does,” Kim recalls. “We thought it was a perfect fit since our classes are geared toward infant through preschool. We are very involved in community charities,” she said, “and were thrilled to be help out.”

Which Makin’ Music Rockin’ Rhythms has been doing since –
     - Collection drives were held in all its tri-state locations last year.
     - A familiar Cradles to Crayons purple collection bin was placed at Makin’ Music’s Media location.
     - This past May, Makin’ Music Rockin’ Rhythms joined Cradles to Crayons at the 19th Middletown Township Community Day , with its staffers “makin’ music” and treating the event attendees to a sample of the sounds and songs that have earned the program rave reviews from critics, parents, teachers, and kids alike.
     - Product donations for the children served by Cradles to Crayons were collected at its Media, Radnor and Springfield locations during this year’s six-week summer session in June and July.

“For us,” said Jeff Baxter, “Makin’ Music Rockin’ Rhythms is like a gift that keeps on giving – helping in so many ways.”

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