Mineola High School senior Bonnie Small has been dreaming for years of doing a concert in the high school.
Small, a singer who plays piano and guitar, said last week she will fulfill her dream next month when she performs at the high school to raise funds for a group that helps to rehabilitate military veterans.
“It’s something I’ve wanted to do since I was a freshman,” she said.
Small said she and two friends, bassist Kevin Oliveira and guitarist Mario Muchlis, were inspired by a presentation given at the school last fall by the Peaceful-Minds Foundation, which provides alternative treatment regimens for military veterans.
So they decided to perform for their senior projects on behalf of the foundation.
“In Peaceful-Minds, they do things for the soul, not just for health. They bring a veteran back to being a full person, not just a recovering vet,” Small said.
Included are alternative methods such as yoga, reiki, an eastern medical technique, and other treatments.
Small said helping veterans returning from the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan has a special meaning to her. Her grandfather served as an aviation technician in the Korean War and her two uncles who have told her about their infantry combat experiences in the Vietnam War, she said,
Small said she and her friends made the connection with Peaceful-Minds through Mineola High School social studies teacher Michael Furey, the faculty advisor for Increase the Peace club.
An alto who has performed with the Mineola Acapella Singers for the past three years in high school, Small performed at last December’s All-State Musicians concert in Rochester. She takes private voice lessons and is planning to be a musical education major as a vocalist in college next fall.
She’s also performed in high school musicals, including “Wedding Singer”, “In the Heights”, “13” and “Guys and Dolls”.
“I’m planning on being a music major in college. That’s why I chose to do a concert,” she said.
Outside of school, Small and Oliveira also perform together in a band that’s a work in progress.
“We kind of mess around. We’re a garage band,” she said.
But they’re looking for serious bands and single acts to audition for the concert, which Small said will likely include a barbershop quartet comprised of members of the high school’s a capella singers.
“We have a lot of talent in Mineola and it’s the best way to showcase the talent everyone has,” Small said.
Now she’s focused on drawing that talent out for what she’s envisioning as a concert long enough to require an intermission with plenty of time for those attending to pitch in to help the veterans.
The music is slated to start in the Mineola High School Auditorium on Thursday, Apr. 24 at 6 p.m.
