Yankees Great Bernie Williams Boosts a Connecticut School's Music Program
New York Yankees legend, guitarist and Latin Grammy nominee Bernie Williams presented an $8,000 National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) Foundation grant to Tisdale School in Bridgeport, Connecticut, earlier this week.
The money will go toward the music program in the school, which Williams recently “adopted” as part of the national Turnaround Arts program.
“The arts and music made me who I am today,” the guitarist told the Bridgeport Daily Voice.
It just so happens that the former centerfielder has returned to the Manhattan School of Music and will graduate soon with a degree in jazz performance.
“I realized without my education I was not going to go as far as I wanted to go,” he told the Tisdale students.
Nationwide, 49 schools participate in the program, which also provides schools with access to art supplies and resources.
Tisdale Principal Charmaine Worthy said Williams is an inspiration for the students, partly because he's back in school himself.
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“(He) tells our students to work hard in school every day,” Worthy told ctpost.com.
Below, check out a clip of Williams jamming with Tisdale students.
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Damian is Editor-in-Chief of Guitar World magazine. In past lives, he was GW’s managing editor and online managing editor. He's written liner notes for major-label releases, including Stevie Ray Vaughan's 'The Complete Epic Recordings Collection' (Sony Legacy) and has interviewed everyone from Yngwie Malmsteen to Kevin Bacon (with a few memorable Eric Clapton chats thrown into the mix). Damian, a former member of Brooklyn's The Gas House Gorillas, was the sole guitarist in Mister Neutron, a trio that toured the U.S. and released three albums. He now plays in two NYC-area bands.
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