Common Chord and food bank sing new duet

They say that music may be the food of love and it feeds souls.

In a new duet between Common Chord and River Bend Food Bank, local music will literally help feed local people.

The two Quad Cities nonprofits have joined forces to present “Musicians for Nutrition,” a 12-day online fundraiser that will run from Monday, Dec. 11 through Friday, Dec. 21. As part of the campaign, local musicians will provide recordings of holiday songs to be shared collectively on the two organizations’ social media platforms.

A new song will be released each day along with a donation link for food bank contributions, according to a Thursday release. Common Chord will work directly with local musicians to coordinate the songs for this campaign, which will raise funds directly for the food bank.

The audio tracks will be uploaded to the food bank YouTube page each day, accompanied by the donation link. The songs are going to represent a diverse group of local musicians. Lewis Knudsen’s “Jingle Bells” was the first posted on Friday, Dec. 8.

“We are so grateful to Common Chord for partnering with us. This presents a great opportunity to not only raise much needed funds for River Bend Food Bank, but also support Common Chord’s mission of improving our community through music,” said Mike Mathews, the food bank director of marketing and communications. “It’s one of those great ‘win-win’ projects.”

River Bend Food Bank works with 400+ hunger-relief partners in 23 counties to make sure people facing hunger have reliable access to healthy food. Leading the community-wide effort to eliminate hunger in eastern Iowa and western Illinois, River Bend distributes millions of meals each year to children, adults, and seniors through partner agencies and food pantries in schools, senior residences, and community organizations.

Common Chord (formerly River Music Experience) is a community music organization that builds a stronger community through the power of music. Common Chord’s suite of programs includes concerts, music education, industry advocacy, and community engagement.

“The power of music inspires us – as individuals and as a society. It can move our spirits and motivate action to confront challenges in our community,” Common Chord executive director Tyson Danner said in Thursday’s release. “By sharing the work of our talented local musicians, we hope to draw more attention to the issue of food insecurity which affects our whole community.”

Since COVID, River Bend Food Bank has experienced a steady decrease in food donations, furthering the importance for monetary donations. Jenny Colvin, chief development officer for River Bend Food Bank, is grateful for the support from Common Chord.

“This time of year is hard for many families struggling with food insecurity,” she said. “It means the world to us for Common Chord to step and utilize their strengths and talents in a unique and heart-warming way to support our mission.”

To support this fundraiser, community members can visit either organization’s Facebook page or visit the donation link HERE.