Brianna Vitale and Ziad
Brianna Vitale and Ziad Kassab at the grand opening. ‘scaling’ new heights D-Man clients can make sweet, sweet music By Joyce Wiswell Get your Associate Degree in High School. TUITION FREE. If you’re looking for a different kind of high school experience, Oakland Early College could be for you. • Unique hybrid high school and college experience • Attend classes on the Oakland Community College campus • Get FREE college credits in high school • Students graduate with a high school diploma, AND 60 transferable college credits OR an Associate Degree. • For Oakland County residents • Enrolling Grades 10-12 for Fall, 2013 • www.oaklandearlycollege.org Call now to schedule a meeting with OEC: 248-522-3540 An Oakland Community College and West Bloomfield School District partnership Oakland Community College Orchard Ridge Campus 248-522-3540 oaklandearlycollege.org Danny Kassab loved to sing and now the charity established in his memory will help other people with severe disabilities make their own music. The D Man Foundation has just opened a music therapy studio adapted for individuals with disabilities like quadriplegia, severe mental and physical impairment, emotional impairment and cognitive impairment. Environmental Control Units and Sip and Puff modules (which allow hands-free operation) will let clients to record and produce their own music. “Danny loved to sing when we were shaving or when he was in the shower,” said his brother, Ziad, who is president of the D-Man Foundation. “Once we took him to the studio with my brother Calvin, who is a musician. We were goofing off and Danny was rapping – he was digging it.” At age 7, Danny was hit by a car and left paralyzed from the neck down. Although he was not expected to survive a year, he lived to 23 before passing away in 2009. His family, which established Guardian Angel Home Health Care Services in response to Danny’s myriad medical needs, then established the foundation to help others cope with chronic disabilities. Ziad Kassab said the idea for the music studio came from Paint A Miracle, an art studio in Rochester where Danny was able to paint by using a mouth stick. “People can come and focus on their ability, not their disability,” he said. “What’s cool is that it’s a twopart process. First they meet with a music therapist who does a clinical assessment and puts together a care plan that lets them create the song. Then they work with an audio engineer to record the music. It can take many hours and at the end, they leave with their own song.” D-Man has hired two music therapists and two audio engineers, and held a fundraiser on April 13 for the studio’s grand opening. The 1,900-square-foot facility in Berkley includes a garage where a van can pull in and patients unload, a music therapy room that acts as a command center, a recording booth and a control room. Music therapy, Kassab said, has many benefits. It helps improve motor functions and skills, improves physical speech skills, strengthens cognitive skills, and gives a sense of purpose and accomplishment to clients, who are often depressed as a result of their catastrophic disabilities. It also provides much-needed social interaction. “This will bring spirits up,” Kassab said, “and some of our higherfunctioning clients will mentor the others.” D-Man has the goal of helping 10 clients make music in the next three months, depending on how fundraising goes. “ gives us an hour in the studio,” Kassab said. He’s also seeking volunteers, particularly musicians who will occasionally donate their time. Learn more or make a donation at MyDMan.org. 24 CHALDEAN NEWS MAY 2013
True love is eternal...
