GCU News Bureau
For the third year in a row, Grand Canyon University Clarinet professor Tim Haas and current and former clarinet students performed a medley of Christmas songs Sunday at Andre House of Hospitality, a shelter that provides meals and clothing to Phoenix’s homeless population.
Haas has never made the event mandatory for his students but always moved by their desire to serve the community during what usually is a busy time of year. He said he felt proud and also humbled, as a teacher, that 13 students were willing to do it, adding, “When you get students that do these kinds of things, nothing’s better than that. They touched people’s lives on Sunday night, and I couldn’t be more proud of them."
Haas added that he never would have guessed that some of the people are homeless. They were visibly moved by the performance.
“When you do something like this it gives you perspective on how lucky we have it and how there are some people who are really struggling a lot,” Haas said. “What we try to do in a very small way is to lift their spirits a little bit and to bring some cheer to them for a little bit, even if it’s just playing Christmas tunes for an hour while they eat.”
