In 1994 Linda Wilson , activity director, began taking piano lessons from entertainer, James Wagner. The Austin Bell Ringers . With assistance from a grant from the Southwest TX State University School of Health Professionals , Linda and James began working full time with eleven facilities. They now have a teaching manual, audio tape and workshops. They believe with proper training and appropriate music this valid technique can be used by any facilitator, conductor or both.
Most people recognize the volunteers that they see throughout their daily lives.
Volunteers put on clown paint to cheer up children in the hospital, help families adopt a pet from the local animal shelter and answer domestic violence crises hotlines at two in the morning. They are choir members and Sunday school teachers. They are doctors and dentists at a community clinic. They are retired executives helping new businesses grow. They are teenagers cleaning the graffiti from a local park or delivering groceries to the elderly.