November 20, 2020 I Philanthropy
F. E. Olds, F2F Music Foundation Donate Horn to Student
F.E. Olds President and Owner David Benedetto at the 2020 NAMM Show.
David Benedetto, president and owner of Mountainside, New Jersey, band instrument producer F. E. Olds, and Vel Lewis, founder of the F2F Music Foundation, recently donated a new Olds trombone to an aspiring musician. Malachi Richard, 11, had been learning to play the trombone but was set to lose his instrument.
Benedetto explained why. “They were renting it through the school, and it was just primarily a financial hardship which is always so sad to see when someone has a desire and wants to keep playing, but family budget doesn’t enable it,” Benedetto said.
Lewis heard about this and contacted Paula Atherton, a F2F board member and endorsing artist for Dakota Sax, one of F.E. Olds’ brands. She reached out to Benedetto, who offered a free trombone — specifically the F.E. Olds NTB110PC student trombone, a tenor trombone with a bore size appropriate for the beginning player.
According to Benedetto, Richard is continuing his studies apace with his new trombone. “This happened just a few weeks ago and he’s able to continue his lessons, as abbreviated as they are given the current situation with school music,” he said. “But he’s doing very well and [is] happy to have some continuity so that there [were] no gaps. Anytime in the beginning stages of learning to play an instrument, if there goes long periods of time when kids aren’t playing or practicing, they can lose momentum and interest easily.”
Lewis is optimistic for Richard’s future. “We believe that this new trombone will be the inspiration he needs to achieve better health mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually, and that his music studies will help him achieve a high level of academic success,” he said.
