MOOSEHEART, IL - If it was impossible to hear the person next to you, it was also not possible to lose concentration on the action taking place Monday (April 21) at the Mooseheart school gym.
Sheltered Reality, a group that uses drums to spread its faith-based encouraging message of hope, visited the campus, and literally snared the residents of the Child City.
“It sure is a unique way,” Mooseheart Superintendent of Education Gary Urwiler said. “It grabs the kids’ attention, and once you grab their attention, the rest of it falls in line for you to share your message.”
Sheltered Reality spreads a message that music can have a meaning. Founded by Steve Schlosser, the group has been in existence more than In more than 10 years, the group has grown and now has satellite groups in a number of states. An Aurora, IL-based group will take flight in June.
One of Sheltered Reality’s members is familiar with another message: Enter to Learn, Leave to Serve, the Mooseheart motto which was recently been painted on the school’s gym wall. Tom Lynch has been a member of the Moose fraternity for 20 years and is the Mooseheart admissions representative for central Iowa. He has been a member of Sheltered Reality for two years.
“It’s exciting,” Lynch said. “Today we had a chance to come back and share all of the fun things that we wanted to. I’m glad the kids had a good time.”
Lynch said he worked for 18 months to find a way to bring Sheltered Reality and its positive musical message to Mooseheart.
“The two ministries, as I call it, have similarities,” Lynch said.
Lynch’s 12-year old daughter Sydney got him involved in Sheltered Reality, which was founded 12 years ago by Steve Schlosser, who was also at Mooseheart. Both Lynches played in the Mooseheart concert while his other daughter Morgan, age 9 and wife Renae watched from the bleachers.
“I saw this as an opportunity to help the kids and to include my family in it,” Tom Lynch said.
Part of the Sheltered Reality message is to “Take a Chance.” To that end, members of the Mooseheart student body and faculty got a chance to try their hand at the drums. Lynch said he had never played drums before he joined the group.
“I could not even do the basic beat that we did today,” Lynch said. “Once we got into it, I realized that Sheltered Reality is not just a musical group, but a mission and a ministry.”
To that end, Lynch said being a Moose and a drum player is a perfect combination.
“In the same way we’re reaching children through Mooseheart admissions, we’re encouraging and motivating children to do all they can.”
The concert involved the entire Mooseheart student body. Among the featured players were Urwiler and Mooseheart Executive Director Scott Hart.
“It was a neat approach to have the teachers and myself and Mr. Hart out front,” Urwiler said. It really captivates the audience a little more when it’s a little more personal.”
Mooseheart Child City & School is a 1,000-acre community and school for children and teens in need of a secure home, located just south of Batavia, IL, between Illinois Route 31 and Randall Road.
Founded in 1913, Mooseheart is supported completely through private donations - the great majority of which come from the 1.3 million men and women of the Moose fraternal organization, in more than 1,800 Lodges and 1,600 Chapters located throughout the U.S., Canada, Great Britain and Bermuda. Moose International headquarters is located on the Mooseheart campus.
Since its founding, Mooseheart has operated a complete, accredited kindergarten-through-high-school academic program, plus art, music, religious and vocational training, and interscholastic sports. It is an extremely nurturing and student-tailored program, with an average student-teacher ratio of 12-1.
Mooseheart students who complete their studies with a 3.0 GPA or better (4.0=A) are eligible for up to five years of annually renewable scholarship funding, covering tuition, room and board in an amount comparable to that required for an in-state student at an Illinois public university.
Mooseheart is currently home to nearly 250 students, ranging in age from preschoolers to high school seniors. Applications for admission to Mooseheart are considered from any family whose children are, for whatever reason, lacking a stable home environment. Mooseheart boasts its own U.S. Post Office and a fully functioning branch of Fifth Third Bank.
In addition to Mooseheart, Moose International also supports Moosehaven, a 70-acre retirement community near Jacksonville, FL founded in 1922; and conducts more than $90 million worth of community service programs annually.
Founded in 1888, the Moose organization has long offered its members an opportunity to do good for others while celebrating life, with family, social, and sporting activities. For more information on the Moose organization, visit the websites at www.Mooseintl.org and www.Mooseheart.org or call 630-966-2229.
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