The goal is simple. My friends and I are trying to integrate the impoverished downtown of Steubenville, OH with the student body of Franciscan University, for the mutual benefit of both parties. Our first step is to establish a thriving music scene \u2014 giving students a reason to come downtown, to encounter their neighbors and build personal relationships, to patronize local businesses, and to give local business leaders a reason to invest in the downtown area, to open up shop, to bring life, jobs, and culture to the downtown.<\/p>\n
We are restoring a historic building to make a music venue. Its second floor will become practice rooms where we can offer free instruments and music activities to kids who couldn\u2019t otherwise afford them, to give them a place off the streets, the powerful influence of the arts, and life-affirming mentor-relationships with volunteer teachers.<\/p>\n