Kith + Kin Chorus Community
A nonprofit fundraiser supporting
Springboard for the ArtsThis is the fundraising site for Kith + Kin Chorus, an uncommon choir community in the Twin Cities.
$14,250
raised by 105 people
$13,000 goal
When one goal closes, another goal opens
So gratifying to know we've hit our initial goal! Thank you everyone for getting us this far! A kindly someone just threw down an $1134 match (very specific, I know) and it would be pretty sweet if we could unlock it by midnight! Can we??
The reality is that our budget gap is closer to $30k for this season so whatever we can pool together here & now is an amount we don't have to hustle in grants, sponsorships and merch sales.
So keep on giving if you can!
xorachel, founding director
What’s your money good for? Let me tell you.
Last season’s supporters helped us do all this:
– put on a Season Finale that raised $22,000 for Raíces Sagradas!
– expand to TWO Season Finale shows from
– safely make it into our 8th season, still with pandemic-focused care
– cover our rehearsal space rent
– provide membership scholarships
– afford diversity consultation as we work to expand representation in the choir
– keep the printer stocked with $$ toner to print gobs and gobs of sheet music
– pay 4 people on staff: myself, our accompanist Zach, facilities/tech support Atom, admin assistant extraordinaire Amy
– pay for choir management software which is super nerdy and great
– compensate for the time & creative labor of beautiful new arrangements
– cover arrangement licensing fees (sexy stuff)
– offer honorariums to our local artist collaborators (Humbird! Cameron Kinghorn! jeremy messersmith! Aby Wolf & Eric Mayson! And this year’s collaborator is still a secret!)
– procure air filters, fans, CO2 monitors and masks for safer singing
– cover boring things like insurance and being registered with the state
… and so so much more!
Kith + Kin Chorus is pleased to partner with Springboard for the Arts as our fiscal sponsor. This relationship allows us to fundraise and receive tax-deductible donations for our work. All gifts made here go directly to support the chorus and our expanding community programs like the Crash Course Chorus.
✨ 🎉 ✨ 🎉 ✨
kith + kin (def: friends and family)
Kith + Kin Chorus – an uncommon choir community in the twin cities – strives to build connection, spread joy and give in service of others through harmony.
Kith + Kin Chorus is a choir in the Twin Cities, open to singers of all skill levels, and 78 diverse voices strong. Led by founder Rachel Kay Ries (of Her Crooked Heart), K+K Chorus aims to nurture a welcoming, joyful environment where anyone who longs to sing in a choir can.
All are welcome:
No matter how much music theory you know, who you pray to or if you pray, your gender identity, your physical ability, the color of your skin, the culture that knit you together, who and how you choose to love, your age or education, how much money you have and on and on…
You are welcome.
Joining the chorus is lottery-based and singers aren't required to have any formal theory knowledge as songs – while challenging – are taught both with sheet music and reference recordings. The song material is a wide, secular mix of classic & indie rock, pop, folk and whatever else inspires, arranged for a choir by Rachel and a few other helping hands.
Think Queen, Björk, Yola, The Kinks, jeremy messersmith, Tina Turner, Paul Simon, Neko Case...
Converting songs into tangible good:
K+K Chorus gives back to the Twin Cities community by holding a fundraising concert each year, proceeds of which go to local organizations striving to make our Cities better, safer, healthier places for all.
Since 2017, K+K has converted song into:
• childcare so a recent refugee parent can go to language study class
• formula, clothing, a new ID for a native mother & child fleeing violence in their home
• medically-tailored food delivered to someone living with terminal illness
• utility bills covered for a family so they can stay by their child's bedside in the ICU
• affordable mental health services for queer and trans youth
• free Spanish-language, trauma-informed therapy for the uninsured
Through our singing we've been able to raise over $57,000 for local nonprofits!
...and on into the future:
Now at the start of our 8th Season, we're stronger than ever and expanding programs to include the Crash Course Chorus and Open Sings - all of which are open to any who want to join. We’re still scheming a kid’s choir and we have a very special (and still secret!) collaborator planned for Season 8. All of this takes quite a lot of labor, skill, dedication, creative care and time.
With a current operating budget of $53,000, we rely on donations, dues, grants and good luck to cover rent, staffing, loads of printing, song arrangement licenses, community singing events and more. We truly could not keep doing this without the support of song-loving individuals like you!Thank you for considering support!
Let's fill this hurting world with harmony.