Connecting the Dots

Long before joining Room 217, I attended a MUSIC CARE CONFERENCE as a master’s student. I discovered possibilities for music beyond education and performance and left with renewed confidence in my career path. Now, leading our conference planning team, I want others to experience that same sense of possibility for music in their lives and workplaces.

One snowy afternoon in Toronto, I met Stephen Harding, President and CEO of the Dartmouth General Hospital Foundation, over coffee to explore bringing the conference to Atlantic Canada. Eight months later, the Foundation is our main conference partner, and our connection extends well beyond the event. The Foundation was instrumental in bringing Dartmouth General Hospital into our music care community as Canada’s first MUSIC CARE Certified hospital. With an existing Concerts in Care partnership bringing live music to patients, families, and staff, the Foundation understands what music can mean within a hospital’s walls.

That commitment has helped shape our conference, opening doors to local musicians such as Joel Plaskett and Music Care Cameos featuring music and storytelling with Concerts in Care. Together with RK MacDonald Nursing Home and Arts & Health Antigonish (AHA!), our local planning team is bringing this gathering to life at Dalhousie University in Halifax on November 14. For me, this is what makes community partnerships meaningful: a shared idea grows into opportunities to learn together and bring music into everyday care. It’s been quite a return on a cup of coffee.

As we prepare for the Music Care Conference at Dalhousie University on November 14, 2026, we are pleased to recognize our partners at RK MacDonald Nursing Home in Antigonish, Nova Scotia.

Through the leadership of Kim MacDonald, Director of Recreation, Spiritual & Volunteer Services and Site Team Leader, and Mary Partridge, Recreation and Horticulture Therapist, RK MacDonald has embraced a culture of person centred care that values creativity, connection, and meaningful engagement. Their work through Music Care CERTIFY for Organizations demonstrates how music can be woven into daily life to support residents, families, staff, and volunteers.

As Kim shares, "I understand the power of music and how it can literally transform experiences. When working with residents living with dementia, it absolutely blows me away that people who have lost the ability to verbalize in sentences or words can still sing songs word for word."

This vision is reflected in initiatives such as Music Is My Heart, a resident songwriting project led by Music Therapist Laura Teasdale and supported by community musicians, volunteers, staff, and residents. The resulting album celebrates creativity, identity, and belonging, and can be heard here: Music Is My Heart Album.

We are excited that RK MacDonald's Music Care CERTIFY journey will be featured at this year's conference. Kim and Mary have been valued program partners and have also contributed significantly to conference planning through their involvement with Arts Health Antigonish, one of our key conference partners.

We are grateful for the leadership, collaboration, and innovation of Kim, Mary, Laura, the RK MacDonald team, and the many musicians and volunteers who continue to demonstrate the impact of music in care.

“Music Care is all about building bridges with the people we serve. Music becomes an invaluable tool for connection, especially when words are no longer accessible.”

— Gertrude Letourneau

Gertrude Letourneau’s work brings this philosophy to life across care settings in Ottawa. Recently retired from Perley Health, she now continues to integrate music intentionally as a MUSIC CARE Certified Individual, reaching residents, families, and care teams across the region.

Presenting more than 150 concerts each year in senior homes, Gertrude creates moments of connection, memory, and well-being. Her work reflects how music can extend beyond a single organization and become part of a broader, community-based approach to care.

She also contributes to the growing field of arts and health through national and international presentations, including the National Organization for Arts in Health conference and Orchestras and Opera Canada. This year, she will present at both the Music and Health Research Institute Conference and the International Society for Music Education World Conference.

Her work highlights how individual practitioners, community settings, and broader networks can come together to strengthen the integration of music in care.

It has been just over four years since I began my journey overseeing education and community engagement with Room 217. One of my greatest joys in this role is supporting caregivers through the Level 3 MUSIC CARE TRAINING. These programs are designed for caregivers exploring music care in any setting—a perfect fit for Toronto-based educator and community musician Beverley Connor.

From our very first session, I sensed Beverley’s fearless commitment to bringing joy-filled experiences to her community. This is evident in the many creative programs she facilitates each week. She composes songs with clients using digital platforms, leads community musicking events, runs campfire sing-alongs, and even hosts book clubs where music often becomes part of the conversation.

Recently, after learning more about soundscapes, Beverley followed a local dance troupe to experience the immersive sounds and observe their impact on the environment. But one program I admire most is her porch concert for residents of an apartment building managed by St. Clare’s Multifaith Housing Society.

This event was part of a global peace initiative that builds community through the shared experience of music. Each year, musicians in more than 70 countries and 1,000 cities participate in this porch concert initiative with the goal of fostering unity through collective music making—what we call musicking in our training program. You can explore more about this inspiring movement at #playmusicontheporchday.

Beverley’s creativity, curiosity, and dedication to community engagement make her an inspiring example of music care in action. 

For the past four years I have had the privilege of working with caregivers who are completing their Level 3 MUSIC CARE TRAINING through Room 217. Working with these individuals provides an opportunity to dive a little deeper into creating a vision for using music care in their role as a caregiver, goal setting and then creating and developing a music care initiative. Through this work, I am fortunate to hear stories of how music is being used to deepen relationships, provide better quality care but also create a sense of belonging and community. 

Caryl Subion is working toward music care certification for individuals. She is a recreation therapy aide with Alberta Health Services where she works primarily with persons living with dementia. Her dedication to programming includes a weekly guitar jam where she uses music “not just as entertainment, but as a powerful tool for memory support, emotional expression, and social connection.”  Her dedication to music in her life bridges both personal and professional contexts as she runs a youth choir at her local parish. Caryl often supports intergenerational programming connecting her local youth choir through performances at Alberta Health Services. Each week I have had the pleasure to learn from and be inspired by Caryl’s work in using music in care. In her words, “music is not just performance – it’s care in action.”

“Some may not understand why I walked away from easier or more conventional paths. But like the song says, “Musika ang buhay na taglay” — music is the life I carry. It’s not just a career or talent. It’s my way of connecting, healing, and bringing meaning to others’ lives and my own.” Caryl Subion