Body
WHEREAS, Harold Wallace Young Sr. was born on July 5, 1933, in Pittsburgh, PA. He was educated in the Pittsburgh Public School system where he played the clarinet and saxophone in the school band alongside the legendary Stanley Turrentine. After high school, he served in the United States Army and received an honorable discharge. Mr. Young then spent the next 35 years working for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). While working at the VA, he doubled as an activities director for the Homewood YMCA in the evenings for nearly ten years; and,
WHEREAS, After the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed, Mr. Young became concerned that the children in the underserved neighborhoods (most notably Homewood) were not receiving appropriate mentorship. It was in 1973, with the support of his friends, that the Jazz Workshop, Incorporated was established. This music education program was located in the Carnegie Library in Homewood. The program included music lessons, Jazz on the steps, Jazz Jam, Poetry and a Musicians' Club. Outreach programming and the Jazz Workshop, Inc. Orchestra have since been added. Students are motivated to improve their music skills and apply these disciplines to academic endeavors that will set the stage for the realities of life. Hundreds of students have benefitted from these services over the last four decades; and,
WHEREAS, Mr. Young and his passion for music have won him awards from the African-American Jazz Preservation Society and the Federal Executive Board. He has received the Keepers Of The Flame Award from the Legacy Arts Project presented by the Kelly Strayhorn Theater. He has also received a proclamation from the Wilkinsburg Borough Council; and,
WHEREAS, On May 16th, The Harold Young Jazz Workshop will be presenting The Big Band Performance at the Homewood Carnegie Library. There will be a special performance by The New Show Band featuring Wayne Barber and Keith Flowers. This event is a celebration of 42 years of communit...
Click here for full text