Drum Roots Receives Lawton Community Foundation Grant

The Percussive Arts Society (PAS) is pleased to announce that it has received a $2,300 grant from the Lawton Community Foundation to continue its Drum Roots program. The grant will be used to help fund 20 sessions of interactive drumming activities in the Lawton community between September 2005 and June 2006.

“Through the continued support of the Lawton Community Foundation, hundreds of Lawton children will benefit from this valuable arts appreciation program,” said PAS Executive Director Michael Kenyon.

Drum Roots is an interactive hand drumming program with arts education, music appreciation and wellness benefits. Presented by Lawton percussionist Jim Harris, the sessions provide exposure to basic rhythmic principles with a brief history of the origins of music in various cultural and performance settings.

PAS launched the program in 2003 to complement existing community programs that are focused on arts education and/or mental and physical health and wellness. The program encourages social interaction and cooperation, and enhances coordination, esteem building, wellness and learning.

The Lawton Community Foundation was established in 1999 to support the charitable interests and concerns of the people of the Lawton community and surrounding areas. The Lawton Community Foundation’s unique endowment structure ensures that Lawton’s cultural, artistic, educational and charitable work will have a strong and lasting source of funding from which future generations will benefit. The Lawton Community Foundation is affiliated with the Oklahoma City Community Foundation, which has been serving central Oklahoma for 35 years. For more information on the Lawton Community Foundation, visit its website at www.lawtoncf.org.