This holiday, delight the little ones in your life with a truly meaningful gift: a Sound Scholars™ Holiday Otter, our thank you to you for making a gift of $25 or greater to Great Bend.
Packaged in a beautiful gift box, each includes an adorable plush otter dressed for the season with a removable jingle bell collar that doubles as wrist bells, a booklet with a QR code to an instructional video, and a play-along video of “Jingle Bells” perfect for young ones to enjoy. For $25 you can take one home from one of our performances (last chance – Friday, Dec 13). Or, for $35 we’ll ship one on your behalf to someone you specify.
More than just a festive toy, these holiday otters represent the youngest learners in our highly praised early learning program, members of Sound Scholars™ Otter Pod. Designed for children ages 2-5, the program uses music to build kindergarten readiness, enhance language development, and cultivate key academic, social-emotional, and prosocial learning skills.
Sound Scholars™ is offered at no cost to families, ensuring that even the most underserved children in our community have access to critical early learning opportunities. By supporting Great Bend with a Holiday Otter gift, you’re not just giving a gift to a loved one—you’re also underwriting one full week (five days) of these transformative classes for a preschooler who might otherwise lack access to early education.
Your gift will make twice the impact: spreading holiday cheer to the children in your life while investing in the future of another. With its jingly fun, cuddly charm, and support for a program that changes lives, our Holiday Otter Package is a gift you can feel good about giving.
Let’s make the season bright for all children—one Otter Pod member at a time!
Quality early learning that is extremely accessible.
Children who participate in early childhood educational programs enter school more ready to learn.
Study after study shows that kids who receive high quality early learning not only show improved performance in reading and mathematics, but also a reduction in special education placement and grade retention and a host of additional long-term benefits. The challenge has always been making these vital experiences accessible to kids with the greeatest need and fewest resources, especially in rural communities.
Sound Scholars™ uses the horsepower that music brings to learning in fast-paced, interactive online classes that are as rigorous as they are fun and accessible.
Today, Sound Scholars™ has served hundreds of kids in not just in Mason County, Washington where Great Bend is based, but in 46 additional states and 10 countries–in both English and Spanish. And we have the opportunity to do so much more both in-person and virtually.
With your help, we can.
“It was clear from the beginning of our very first virtual music lessons that Great Bend Center for Music is doing so much more than just helping kids become great musicians. I have loved watching my son practice new skills, and I have seen him develop his cooperation, teamwork, listening skills, and critical thinking along the way. Whether or not he grows up to be a musician, I am so glad he has had such a positive experience with an awesome teacher and a community.”
– Sound Scholars™ parent
More ways to make waves!
See if your company matches donations!
Combining your company’s matching gift with our current donor pledge could mean Pod Squad Membership goes 3–4x as far to support our no and low barrier community music programs!
Enter your employer’s name in the search box below to find out if your employee offers matching donations, or contact your HR department if you are unable to locate your company — they may still provide matching gifts!
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