Heartbeats Around The World: A concert for change

Heartbeats around the World will help support the children in Kenya by providing them with a brand new school!

Menaka Raman-Wilms is an 18-year-old singer from Thornhill, Ontario. But unlike many talented artists, her dreams don’t focus solely on the Grammy Awards or making it rich. Instead, Menaka uses her beautiful voice to make a difference in the lives of children around the world.

On December 7, 2007, she will host the third annual Heartbeats Around the World charity Christmas concert benefiting Free The Children. In the last two years alone, Heartbeats Around the World has raised more than $2,300 in ticket proceeds and the funds have gone toward building a school in Kenya through the Brick By Brick campaign. The concert takes place in Menaka’s hometown of Thornhill, which also happens to be the hometown of Craig and Marc Kielburger.

The event shares the same philosophy as Free The Children: that young people have the power to change the world and truly make a difference. Heartbeats Around the World is organized by youth and the performances feature talented local teenagers on vocals, the piano, guitar, flute and violin.

The holiday season is about celebration, but also about being thankful for what we have. This event highlights the importance of giving back to the world, especially to the children around the world who don’t have the same amazing opportunities that we do.

In their own unique way, Menaka and her talented friends in Thornhill have shown us how we can use our talents, our skills and the things we love to do to truly make a difference.

We hope that this year the Heartbeats Around the World charity concert will be more successful than ever, and we wish Menaka and her friends the best of luck this holiday season!

Helpful Hints from Helpful Links

Check out a cool video about projects in Kenya.
Find out more about the Brick By Brick campaign.
Throw a party or a concert to create change with Free The Children.

Free The Children is the largest network of children helping children through education in the world, with more than one million youth involved in our innovative education and development programs in 45 countries. Founded by international child rights activist Craig Kielburger, Free The Children has an established track-record of success, with three nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize and partnerships with the United Nations and Oprah’s Angel Network.