2013 Richmond Hill
Mark Hebert, President and CEO of Cosmo Music, understands the value that music can bring to the lives of others. Having been fortunate enough to grow up surrounded by music, lending a hand to his father who started Cosmo Music back in 1968, Mark does his best to ensure that everyone in the area can have this opportunity as well.
For Mark, this means supporting a number of different local events, organizations and charities with a music related component. Cosmo Music has and continues to be a staunch supporter of all Town of Richmond Hill events donating sound and lighting equipment in an effort to help ‘enrich the community spirit through music’. It is the gold partner of The Coalition for Music Education in Canada, part of the Ontario Music Educators’ Association, and a sponsor of the Music Alive Festival; all helping to promote music in our communities and schools. And the list could truly go on and on. “We’ve always given back. I mean my father was a big proponent of giving back. The business was not big enough to do it at the same level that we do now, but it has always been a priority,” said Mark.
It was when they moved to their new location four years ago, however, that Mark decided it was really time to up the ante. “Now was the time to step up to the plate and give back to a much larger degree,” he said.
At the time they were giving to a number of different charities and Mark decided that they really needed to streamline their efforts in order “to make a serious commitment that means something”. “So we actually had a vote with the staff and everyone overwhelmingly chose Friends of Music Therapy which is in support of the SickKids Foundation,” said Mark. This endowment fund provides music therapists for children in palliative and cancer programs at SickKids Hospital.
“It is just an amazing program that introduces music into patients’ lives and opens up the lines of communication,” said Mark. “And we need more of these in a lot of hospitals because it really helps children and their families to cope and get through these terrible situations they are faced with.” Funds raised through staff events and customer promotions are contributed to this program, which is usually between $ 4,000 and $5,000 each year.
And that number will continue to grow. Mark and his staff have big aspirations, with plans to continue donating to the Friends of Music Therapy at an increasingly larger scale in hopes that they will eventually have their own Cosmo Music named foundation in the same area of Music Therapy. “I think this would help our staff feel even further commitment to the program, so we are headed in that direction. I don’t know how many years it is going to take to reach that goal, but we’d really like to get to that.”
They are also currently in the midst of developing a Cosmo Music Education Scholarship for students in need in their community. The scholarship would give a full year’s worth of free lessons and free instrument rentals to its recipients. “All these kids that are out there and are desperate to have music in their lives, and that is what helps them to get through their day to day, helps them survive; we want these kids to be able to have that in life, and not have the misfortune of not being able to do it just due to monetary reasons,” said Mark. It is like music to the ears.