1. ONTARIO DISTRICT LEADERSHIP ACADEMY 2017
Posted with permission of the author.
This text and information may be used in whole or in part by any man or woman Barbershopper providing due credit is given to:
“J.R. Digger MacDougall, Ontario District Chair for Sing Canada Harmony; January 13, 2017”.

2. A Better Canada Through Singing A WAY TO BUILD
I know that Behavioral scientists, music educators, teachers and certainly every singer in the world know the advantages of singing and the excellent physical and mental health benefits that singing brings to every human being. So when Sing Canada Harmony Scholarship Fund was started the intention was, and still is, to build a better Canada through singing.

3. A Better Canada Through Singing A WAY TO BUILD
I know that Behavioral scientists, music educators, teachers and certainly every singer in the world know the advantages of singing and the excellent physical and mental health benefits that singing brings to every human being. So when Sing Canada Harmony Scholarship Fund was started the intention was, and still is, to build a better Canada through singing.

4. Builds a Better Canada Through Singing
Sing Canada
Harmony
Builds a Better Canada Through Singing
My original intention was to set up an organization that would parallel that of Harmony Foundation International, which is the official charity of the Barbershop Harmony Society. As a matter of fact, I was serving on the Board of Harmony Foundation when I discovered that there were no real benefits that could be realized by Canadians by donating money to organizations in countries other than Canada.

5. An all-Canadian Charitable Organization
Sing
Canada
Harmony
Registered with CRA
What was necessary was to set up an all Canadian charitable organization, which was registered with the Canada Revenue Agency of the Government of Canada that would benefit men and women Barbershoppers and other singers in every community in Canada. Such an organization would have to have an all Canadian Board of Directors.

6. Sing Canada Harmony Board of Directors 2017
JR Digger MacDougall, Founding Chair
Murray Phillips, NED
Chair & CEO, Wolfville, NS,
Gerry Borden, Vice Chair,
Chair Scholarships & Awards
Abbotsford BC, EVG,
Doran McTaggart,
Windsor, PIO
David Pearce,
Regina, SK, LOL
Ted Manthorp, ONT Legal Counsel (* Ex officio)
Michael Black, Toronto ON
Trinda Ernst, Kentville NS
Past President Harmony, Inc.
Sharon Towner, Secretary and PC Chair; Zephyr, ON, SAI Region #16
John Wilkie, Guelph ONT
James Thexton,
Treasurer, Calgary AB, EVG
Judy McAlpine, Chilliwack, BC,
Region #26 SAI
Gordon Billows,
Winnipeg, MB, LOL
Sing Canada Harmony Scholarship Fund was started with three original Directors and incorporated under the laws of Canada through Industry Canada. After a long (6-year) search for a lawyer, Sing Canada Harmony Scholarship Fund was registered as a Canadian charity, according to the laws of Canada with an expanded Board of Directors that included representatives from the 3 Barbershop Harmony singing organizations: Barbershop Harmony Society, Harmony, Inc., and Sweet Adeline's International. These men and women Barbershoppers are or have been leaders in their respective organizations

7. IN CANADA SING CANADA HARMONY Supports :
The Barbershop Harmony Society
Harmony, Inc.
Sweet Adelines International
Choirs, Vocal ensembles, Singing at Camps, a cappella singing etc.
Right from the get-go it was important for us to ensure that Sing Canada Harmony supported singing in all the communities and all the schools of Canada, particularly Barbershop Harmony. Therefore, it was agreed to support the three Barbershop Harmony singing organizations and the training they conduct. Meetings with leaders of HI and SAI followed, as did telephone enquiries with leaders of ONT District and the 4 Can/Am Districts.

8. IN CANADA SING CANADA HARMONY Supports :
Vocal Music in schools and communities particularly:
Four-part close a cappella harmony in the Barbershop style
Scholarships in vocal music for children, youth and men and women who help Canadians of all ages to sing
As well as vocal music, or singing, and all the communities and schools in Canada with an emphasis on Barbershop Harmony, children, youth, the adults who help them learn to sing and Barbershoppers who provided service to their community

9. Sing Canada Harmony Believes
Singing enriches lives
It was easy to bring together the 11 later 12 members of our Board of Directors (and subsequent successors) to support such a national charity because Barbershoppers already believe in the power of song and the benefits that singing, can bring to every human being. The values of the Sing Canada Harmony Scholarship Fund, or said a different way, what sing Canada harmony believes in, are quite straightforward.
We believe that singing enriches lives.
That's pretty simple because everyone knows that singing does enrich lives.

10. Sing Canada Harmony Believes
Vocal music is vital to developing healthy, creative and responsible citizens
The Board of Directors of sing Canada harmony scholarship fund already knows how vital singing is to the development of responsible citizens

11. Sing Canada Harmony Believes
Four part a cappella harmony in the Barbershop style provides access to creativity, fun, fellowship, leadership development and enrichment
We believe that four-part a cappella harmony in the barbershop style provides numerous benefits to singers including these on this slide: - as well it might be noted that these benefits are close to values of singing organizations including BHS, HI and SAI

12. SING CANADA HARMONY is committed to:
Equal access to vocal music for Canadians of all ages
Given these beliefs that we share it can easily be seen that we are committed to ensuring that Canadians of all ages have equal access to singing and learn to sing.

13. SING CANADA HARMONY is committed to:
Assisting Canadian youth and children to discover the joy of singing
We are committed to helping every Canadian youth and every Canadian child discover the power of song through singing, particularly in choirs and choruses

14. SING CANADA HARMONY is committed to:
Assisting men and women to help Canadians of all ages to discover the joy of singing
We want to help every man and every woman in Canada, regardless of age, to sing and enjoy singing

15. SING CANADA HARMONY is committed to:
Helping the men and women who
Facilitate learning in vocal music
Lead, manage administer or perform in singing organizations,
Compose, adjudicate, arrange or distribute vocal music
Study vocal music or singing organization leadership
So who exactly do we want to help and are we going to help?
We want to help music educators and people involved in teaching music.
We want to help people who lead manager, administer singing organizations and we want to help people who sing within those organizations.
We want to help men and women who do the work associated with composition judging arranging or distributing vocal music; we even want to help people learn how to MC music concerts and performances.
We want to help Canadians want to study vocal music or what want to learn how to run a singing organization at the macro level or at the chorus or choir level.

16. SING CANADA HARMONY helps Canadians by:
Raising funds for scholarships to support them in:
University and College programs, courses, and other training
Harmony Explosion Camps
DLA, HITS, HEP, CDDI, IES
Director’s and Harmony Colleges
Other programs, seminars and training
I do we do that?
We provide funding for University and college programs, courses and just about any other training related to singing as long as the training is conducted by a bona fide music teachers, clinicians and other individuals certified within our singing organizations to facilitate learning in singing, conduct or direct, or organize and lead.
We provide funding for harmony explosion camps, youth, training days, youth, seminars and workshops, youth choirs and choruses, and other youth activities related to singing and all the communities and schools of Canada.
We provide funding for training at district leadership academies, Harmony, Inc. training seminars, harmony Inc. education programs, chorus director, training, international education seminars and a variety of other in-house training conducted by the three barbershop harmony singing organizations

17. SING CANADA HARMONY Scholarships
Fund Canadians
at learning institutions in
programs or courses to
bring vocal music to
Canadian schools and
communities.
Sing Canada harmony scholarship fund is able to provide this type of training for Canadians of all ages and every school and every community of Canada through individual scholarships

18. LONG TERM GOAL
To ensure that a cappella vocal music particularly in the Barbershop Style is established and maintained in the schools and communities across CANADA
Because in the long term we want to make sure that barbershop harmony continues in the communities and schools across Canada. As a matter fact I have a personal vision to fund all training for all men and women Barbershoppers at all constituency levels across Canada

19. Throughout BHS Districts,
SHORT TERM GOALS
Fund Scholarships
For Canadian:
Men and women who sing or want to sing
Directors, Choral Conductors and Music Educators, Music group leaders
Children and Youth
University Students
Throughout BHS Districts,
HI Areas
and SAI Regions
We are doing that right now. We all already providing scholarships to Canadian children, youth, men and women who sing, or want to sing all across Canada. As a matter fact, the sing Canada harmony scholarship fund in the past six years has funded $280,000 in scholarships to these people who are listed on this slide.

20. WHAT WE MUST DO:
Support Barbershop and the three great Barbershop singing organizations
Share performances on stage other Barbershop choruses and quartets with youth and children’s choirs and quartets
To achieve these goals there are certain things that we must do; things that we should do and things we could do. Let's look at the important things that we must do first. We have to support singing and we have to support barbershop harmony in the three great singing organizations. We have across our country.
We have to start sharing our performance stage with other barbershop choruses, men and women and with children's and youth choirs and quartets

21. WHAT WE MUST DO: Build and fund youth choruses through Sing Canada
Support Music Education in Canadian communities and schools
Build and fund youth choruses through Sing Canada
Join and offer leadership to local arts councils and choir associations
AND…
We have to support music education in the communities and schools of Canada to ensure that everyone has access to learning instrumental and vocal music, particularly barbershop harmony.
We have to build and fund youth choruses
we have to encourage our leaders to join organizations that promote vocal music, instrumental music and the other arts, across Canada

22. ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO SUPPORT SING CANADA
WHAT WE MUST DO:
SUPPORT SING CANADA
ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO SUPPORT SING CANADA
AND…
We have to support organizations that supports singing and we have to encourage others to do the same thing

23. 8) APPOINT or ELECT A SING CANADA HARMONY CHAPTER LIAISON
WHAT YOU MUST DO:
8) APPOINT or ELECT A SING CANADA HARMONY CHAPTER LIAISON
AND…
As a Chapter President, YOU must elect or appoint a Sing Canada Harmony Chapter Liaison (and if a BHS Chapter have your Chapter Secretary list the name of the appointee on BHS e’Biz.) The in all cases for BHS, HI and SAI Chapter leaders - please ensure Sing Canada is advised of the appointment so that the SCH Chapter Liaison Kit can be forwarded and arrangements made for the training of the appointee.

24. “KEEP A MELODY RINGING IN YOUR HEART”…
“KEEP A MELODY RINGING IN YOUR HEART”
We have to follow the advice of one of our own organizational theme songs By keeping a melody ringing, not only in our own hearts. But the hearts of all Canadians

25. “Keep the whole world singing”
And…
“Keep the whole world singing”
We have to ensure that all Canadians are exposed to singing in choruses and choirs, and that they learn the true value of singing for themselves and everybody around. People who joining in harmony can bring peace to the world.

26. ACTION TO TAKE TODAY Visit the Sing Canada Website
Visit The Coalition for Music Education in Canada:
Participate in Music Monday – the first Monday in May every year. AND frequently visit these websites

27. Harmony Thanks you for helping to build a Better Canada Through SONG
Sing Canada
Harmony Thanks you for helping to build a Better Canada Through SONG
Let me conclude the introductory part of this presentation by thanking each one of you for being here and learning how we can do this together; how we can help to build a better Canada through singing.