Spotlight on
Beach, Arts, Music, & Mentoring (BAMM)
A Colonial Beach Community Foundation partner, BAMM focuses on enhancing the lives of youth in Colonial Beach. We are pleased to take an opportunity to put a spotlight on the excellent work that BAMM does for our community.
BAMM -- or Beach Arts, Music, & Mentoring -- recognizes a long-held belief in the importance of arts and music in schools. A 2019 study by the Brookings Institution "provide[s] strong evidence that arts educational experiences can produce significant positive impacts on academic and social development." (Learn more about the Brooking Institution study here.)
Examples of what BAMM has done ...
Formed in 2017 by part-time residents (who have since became full-time residents), BAMM quickly surpassed its original vision of supporting arts and music in Colonial Beach schools. BAMM helps meet the needs and supports the interests of Colonial Beach youth wherever it can. For example, BAMM has...

  • Offered youth activities at community events, such as Riverfest, Earth Day, Sunday Fundays; and the Northern Neck Beach Music Festival, Osprey Festival, and Westmoreland Health Fair.
  • Paid registration fees for young people to participate in Little League.
  • Co-sponsored last December's CB Kids Christmas Party, which served nearly 200 families in need.
  • Partnered with the 21st Century Community Learning Center (CLC) after-school program to recruit community volunteers to provide student with enrichment activities outside the normal classroom curriculum. Activities have included yoga classes, seasonal art projects, aerodynamics and paper airplanes, greeting cards for deployed service men and women, cooking, and tennis clinics.
  • Established a music club with the help of local musicians to offset the lack of music instruction in the high school.
  • Donated 100 backpacks to CB Kids, which were filled with school supplies donated by residents.
  • Donated over $5,000 every school year to the art teachers and elementary school music teacher, high school drama club, and STEM programs for purchasing supplies.
  • Paid dues for parents to join the PTA and become more involved in their children's education.
  • Partnered with the PTA to sponsor student events and teacher appreciation week.
  • Awarded scholarships to deserving high school seniors or recent graduates to help further their education.
  • Sponsored and provided support to elementary and high school student productions, to include funding set construction and providing volunteer ushers.
  • Supported publication of printed high school football game programs.
  • Sponsored a Big Band Dinner Dance to raise funds for both BAMM and the Torrey Smith Park.
  • Donated tennis racquets to be raffled off to students, and collected and refurbished over 20 racquets that are used in tennis clinics for young people.
BAMM in the COVID World
The effects of COVID-19 have presented unique, unforeseen challenges for our town, schools, and students. It has forced the community and schools to cancel events and activities. BAMM has helped meet some of those challenges and provide as much normalcy as possible.

For example, because the community Easter egg hunt had to be cancelled, BAMM, together with the PTA, set up individual Easter egg hunts at over 50 houses during the night before Easter. In addition, BAMM volunteers assisted the schools in delivering meals to students and their families; and filled over 350 bags with educational and fun activities to be distributed along with meals.
Support BAMM
You can help BAMM in its mission to enhance the lives of our youth. Select the Support BAMM button to open PayPal and follow the steps below.

In PayPal:
  1. Select or type the amount you wish to donate.
  2. Select Next, and then select Add a note; type BAMM. This will earmark your donation for BAMM use only.
  3. Select Donate Now to complete your donation.
Or, send a check to CBCF, P.O. Box 375, Colonial Beach, VA 22443; write BAMM on the memo line.

Thank you.

Follow BAMM on Facebook to learn about upcoming activities and volunteer opportunities.
Save the Date
BAMM's (almost) annual concert fundraiser has been scheduled for Labor Day Weekend. (Like everything else in 2020, last year's concert was canceled.) Although COVID-19 will remain a concern in the months ahead, BAMM plans to close out the summer of 2021 with its signature free concert fundraiser, adhering to whatever CDC's guidelines are in effect at that time.
Did You Know?
Art and music in schools can have many benefits; for example...

  • Music stimulates parts of the brain associated with academic achievement and emotional development.
  • Music can help improve memory; dance can help develop motor skills.
  • Music and art enhance creativity, which can lead to innovation.
  • Music helps improve social skills; social skills help promote other skills, such as teamwork, leadership, and interpersonal relationships.
  • Art and music can improve language and reading skills.
  • Art and music can enhance critical thinking skills. Visual learning through art helps develop visual-spatial skills; music helps develop spatial-temporal skills, which, in turn, can help develop logic, abstract thinking, and problem-solving skills.
  • Art and music can help instill self-confidence and self-discipline, as well as make cultural and personal connections.