MARCH 2013
the newsletter for Nuçi’s Space, a nonprofit musicians’ support/resource center
We Need Your Help More Than Ever
T
hroughout my childhood and adolescence I was a fiercely independent kid. I often took on ideas and projects that were well beyond my capacity to complete successfully without help. I had a gift for conceiving and developing ideas. However, when it came time to implement the plan, my efforts often fell short of expectations. Despite my pursuit of personal growth, this is an old habit that I continue to struggle with occasionally. For reasons beyond my full understanding, as a young person I had an innate need to prove to myself, and sometimes others, that I was “strong enough” and capable of “going at it” alone. I can recall countless occasions when my parents, grandparents and teachers would remind me and actively encourage me to ask for help. Their wisdom and experience could clearly see the inevitable, often undesirable, results of my stubborn and blindly-independent approach. It was with experience and more specifically, my experience at Nuçi’s Space that I began to not only see the value, but the necessity of knowing when to ask for help and not hesitate to take action. This lesson has been an invaluable asset in my personal life as well—my marriage, my relationship with my daughter, friendships and my mental health have benefited. Ironically, it was my stubbornness and independent nature that first drew me to Linda and her dream for Nuçi’s Space. My emotional connection to Linda was almost instant. She possessed a confidence, intensity and unyielding determination that I could relate to and wanted to be immersed in. However, with Linda as my mentor and friend, I learned the importance of not only building a community, but actively being a part of that community. The responsibility of all community members is to give and receive support. Today, in this open letter to you—our friends, family and supporters—I am practicing the lesson I resisted for so many years in my early life. I am asking for your help. On behalf of Nuçi’s Space and the thousands of lives that have been positively affected by our work in the community, we need your help. As mentioned in our last newsletter regarding the Counseling Assistance Program, Nuçi’s Space reported a 44% increase during the past two years in the “average number of clients served per month.” Continuing this
by
Bob Sleppy
trend into January 2013, we reported the largest number of client intakes in one month since our inception. For the most part, this is great news. It means that more people are asking for and receiving the help they need. Nuçi’s Space has succeeded in becoming a trusted, wellrespected and effective access point for musicians, artists and others seeking support and mental health treatment. The troubling aspect of our success is that the demand for services is drastically outpacing our ability to raise the funds needed to meet demand. In many ways it could be said that Nuçi’s Space is quickly becoming a victim of our own success. Rather than leave you with a general appeal for help, I’ll offer a few specifics suggestions of how you can help us. First and foremost, if you have contributed financially to Nuçi’s Space in the past, please consider continuing your support. If you have not contributed in the past, please visit our website, learn about our organization and consider making a donation online or use the giving envelope provided. If you have a question or would like to contact us please don’t hesitate to call or send an email. We’d love the opportunity to meet and share our story with you. Second, please share this newsletter, our website and your experience of Nuçi’s Space with your friends, family, co-workers and anyone that you think would be interested in supporting our mission. We’ve included a basic overview of Nuçi’s Space, including a couple of financial graphs, to review and share. We need your help to widen our reach and build our network of support. Lastly, we would like your help in telling the Nuçi’s Space story and its impact on your life, your family or someone close to you. You’ll read a more in depth appeal from Will Kiser, our Counseling Advocate, later in this newsletter. If you have financially supported, volunteered, worked as an intern, attended a support group, rehearsed or performed a benefit at Nuçi’s Space please allow us the opportunity to share your experience with others. We’d like to know “why supporting Nuçi’s Space is important” to you. We are hopeful and optimistic that by sharing your Nuçi’s Space story and experience, it will motivate others to follow in your footsteps. Please email us with any questions, suggestions or correspondence at bob@nuci.org or donate@nuci.org. As always, thank you and take care.
nuçi’s space 396 Oconee Street Athens, GA 30601 706.227.1515 space@nuci.org www.nuci.org www.facebook.com/ nucisspace Newsletter Contributors
Bob Sleppy Will Kiser Laura Ford Chris Byron Lesley Cobbs Photos
Chad Osburn Lester Johnson Lesley Cobbs Jeff Himpele Design & Layout
Larry Tenner