LYNN — The Demakes Family YMCA’s new Music & Performing Arts Center will be open to the public on Saturday.
Located at 20 Neptune Blvd, the donor-funded center will offer free and low-cost access to music lessons, vocal training, theater, digital production, creative labs, and hands-on arts exploration to create more opportunities for local youth.
The idea for the project first started in 2017. Kathleen Walsh, president and CEO of YMCA of Metro North, thanked board member Kevin Colcord, his wife Dee, late board member John Garrett, music studio committee members, community partners, and the YMCA staff for making the vision a reality.
“We wanted to make sure that this was state-of-the art with no cut corners, and that it is a comfortable place for kids to learn. It’s another way for kids to excel and gain confidence and give them opportunities that they normally couldn’t get,” Walsh said at the opening reception on Thursday.
Andrew Demakes, former president of the YMCA of the North Shore Board of Directors, talked about the unique advantage that the space will offer to local youth.
“We’re offering different opportunities and programming that no other YMCA in the country is offering. People can come here, have a safe space, (and) explore many different ideas,” Demakes said.
Music Center Director Jon Glasser emphasized the importance of giving local youth a safe place to explore creatively.
“There’s not a facility in the area like it,” Glasser said. “It offers many different opportunities for youth and teens to grow and progress with their music careers and find something they didn’t know about themselves. When you’re first starting out, you don’t really know where to put all that energy. Now we have these areas where (youth) can explore.”
Mayor Jared Nicholson spoke about how the center will benefit creative minds in the city.
“This is going to be so meaningful for the young people of our city,” he said. “I believe that everyone has the potential for creativity, but we know that not everyone has the same access to the tools that are needed to cultivate that and share that with the world. And I’m so thrilled that young people in Lynn are going to have access to those tools. This facility is going to touch the soul of our city.”
Singer Amanda Mena, St. Mary’s and Berklee College of Music graduate and America’s Got Talent finalist, joined the Lynn YMCA Music Program at the age of 10. At the reception, she spoke about what the full-circle moment meant to her.
“(This) place truly became the foundation of everything for me. Within these walls, I laughed, I cried, I celebrated, and I learned the meaning of hard work, discipline, community, and resilience. This space shaped me in ways that I will always carry with me,” Mena said. “To know that this room will lift countless others and create a safe creative space for art, to grow, heal, and transform lives as it did mine, that is a legacy I will carry with me.”
The event concluded with Mena singing a rendition of “Greatest Love of All” by Whitney Houston while accompanied by pianist Steve Hendrickson.
