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CANCER: drumStrong, a drum-a-thon to beat cancer, will be May 5 and 6 at Misty Meadows Farm in Weddington. Hundreds of drummers will begin the first annual 24-hour drum circle at 4 p.m. May 5. A health fair will also be held. Registration: $25-$50. Proceeds go to the Levine Children's Hospital Hematology/Oncology Center and the Lance Armstrong Foundation. Details: www.drumstrong.org; Scott Swimmer, 704-375-7177.
Posted on Mon, Apr. 30, 2007
DAY BY DAY Helen Schwab
Record-Breaker? drumStrong will try to break world record of 24+ hours, drumming for cancer treatment and research. Misty Meadows Farm in Weddington; www.drumstrong.org.
Posted on Wed, May. 02, 2007
Paid to Party: Hump Day
SAVE A LIFE: Bring your drums and painkillers to drumSTRONG. It's 24 hours of drumming to raise money to support people living with cancer, cancer education and to fund research. It begins today at the Misty Meadows Farm in Weddington. www.drumstrong.org/intro.htm
Posted on Thu, May. 03, 2007
IN MY OPINION
Beating the drum for cancer fight
Father organizes 24-hour-long event to raise research funds
CLIFF HARRINGTON
If you ride past Misty Meadows Farms on Providence Road in Weddington today, there's a good chance you'll see a stage being built in the middle of a huge pasture.
Activities in that pasture will gain momentum as we get closer to the weekend. Then, about 4 p.m. Saturday the drumming will start, and it will continue for 24 hours.
The event is called drumSTRONG. It's the creation of Scott Swimmer with inspiration from his son Mason. It's a way to raise money for cancer research while educating people about treatment.
drumSTRONG will take place, rain or shine, Saturday and Sunday. The public and performers from around the region will gather and beat drums continuously for 24 hours.
It all started with the Swimmers, who live in Charlotte. Mason, 18, is a bone cancer survivor. He was invited in 2006 to ride with Lance Armstrong in the Ride for the Roses in Austin, Texas.
The event is sponsored by the Lance Armstrong Foundation, which also is a cancer support network. Armstrong is a cancer survivor who went on to become a seven-time Tour de France winner.
"Just being around those cool people brought Mason to a new level of thinking about survivalship. They were there to help the cancer community," Scott said. "The stay in Austin made me want to do something bigger. Not just raise money, but raise awareness."
"...I didn't want this to be just another fundraiser. Drumming is as basic a communication force as you can find. It's something everybody can do, with or without rhythm."
Meanwhile, Mason, a student at Providence Day School in Charlotte, has a prosthetic leg as a result of the cancer. But his father says he's doing fine. Mason didn't want the story to be about him.
He and his father want to focus on drumSTRONG.
There will be a health fair with medical, holistic and integrative medicine exhibits, and representatives from various cancer societies to address cancer concerns.
"If you have good tools, the job is easier," Scott said. "The best tool for cancer is education. I'm trying to help eliminate the fear of 'do I have or will I get cancer' by letting people know there are tools... be familiar with the resourses locally available. Also, money in the right places will help fix problems, too. Funding research is paramount."
So you'll have to pay ($25 per person, $50 for families) to get onto the grounds.
But you'll get to enjoy a picturesque setting off Providence Road at Ennis Road. You can camp or just park in some of the designated areas.
Just remember there will be continuous drumming for 24 hours. Also remember to bring something to sit on and a hat if you're sensitive to sun. There aren't many trees in the pasture.
If you don't have a drum, you can buy one. You must drum by hand; no electronic stuff.
No alcohol will be allowed. There will be vendors selling food and drinks. You also can bring your own.
Scott says the goal is to raise $150,000. That money will go to the Levine Children's Hospital Hematology and Oncology Center and to The Lance Armstrong Foundation.
The bands performing will help people keep the drums going. However, spectators won't get off the hook.
Late into the night, the bands will stop. Then it will be up to those who've come to keep the beat going. And isn't that the way it should be? We all rely on each other for support. in my opinion.
drumSTRONG
Where: 455 Providence Road South, Weddington. From Charlotte, take Providence Road east through Weddington to Ennis Road. From Monroe, you can take N.C. 84 south to Weddington and turn left on Providence Road. Signs will direct you to Misty Meadows Farms and the site of drumSTRONG.
Cost: $25 per person; $50 per family. Cliff Harrington
Go & Do Calendar
DRUMSTRONG: Misty Meadows Farm in Weddington. www.drumstrong.org.
• May 5-6. A 24-hour drum-a-thon to benefit the Lance Armstrong Foundation and the Levine Children's Hospital. 100s of drummers will drum for 24-hours, anyone is welcome to join in. Donations accepted.
Drumming Up Support
Saturday, May 5
Published 05.02.07
"Shall I play for you, pa rum pum pum pum, On my drum?" This is what "The Little Drummer Boy" asked Jesus because he had nothing to give in the classic Christmas song. drumSTRONG operates in the same manner. People coming together to give what they can to raise money to fund cancer awareness, education, support, and research. The plan is to form the planet's largest and longest continuous rhythm "drum circle." Hopefully, even netting participants a place in the Guinness World Records. 4 p.m. Misty Meadows Farm, 455 Providence Road S. Weddington, N.C. 704-375-7177. www.drumstrong.org.
DRUMSTRONG IN UNION COUNTY
Event's goal: Beat drums, beat cancer
Drum circle hopes to raise money, set a Guinness world record
RYAN BASEN
WEDDINGTON --In fall 2005, "Jungle" Jim McGuire was diagnosed with testicular cancer. He underwent five weeks of radiation treatments and suffered from mild depression. But the Charlotte man, now 47, survived.
On Saturday McGuire banged on drums to celebrate.
He was one of dozens of people to participate in a continuous drum circle on Misty Meadows Farm in southwest Union County.
The circle, expected to continue through this evening, was the main event for drumSTRONG, a weekendlong event to raise funds and awareness for cancer.
Charlotte's Scott Swimmer organized it for his son Mason, who battled cancer and is now a senior at Providence Day School. Swimmer hopes to set a Guinness world record for the longest ongoing drum circle later today; it is being webcast live on www.drumSTRONG.org for Guinness officials. A drum circle is a group gathered to make music with percussion instruments.
Mason Swimmer, who has been cancer-free for more than a year, got the idea for drumSTRONG after he participated in a bike ride last year with cancer survivor and Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong.
DrumSTRONG is raising funds for the Lance Armstrong Foundation and the Levine Children's Hospital. Scott Swimmer hopes to raise $150,000, in part by charging $25 for participants. Local health and medical organizations set up booths to educate people about cancer.
Many participants came to honor friends and loved ones who are battling or died of cancer. Some, like McGuire, now cancer-free, came to honor their triumphs. Others love drumming and the unique idea for a cancer fundraiser.
"It's a good idea to branch out into another genre," said drummer Sally Bingham, 21, of Charlotte."People are raced out."
Minutes before 5 p.m., Scott Swimmer ascended a stage and addressed the crowd of a few hundred. "Cancer will crumble to the beat of our drums," he said. "Be heard. Drum long. Drum strong."
Swimmer then grabbed a walking stick (which once belonged to a friend of Mason who succumbed to cancer last year) and banged a gong, signaling the drum circle's start.
About 30 yards away, dozens of people sitting on plastic folding chairs and bales of hay began banging on drums of all sizes. They used drumsticks and their hands. Those who didn't have drums beat on 5-gallon orange buckets.
The point, Swimmer said, is to employ drumming as a simple communication method, uniting people against cancer. "I'm just curious how these kids hang," Swimmer said about 40 minutes in. "We've got to do this through the night."
As long as people like Justin Dunivant stuck around, they stood a chance of making it. "It's going to be crazy out here tonight," the 16-year-old from Waxhaw said Saturday afternoon. "I can't wait."
Drums beat for 25 hours
RYAN BASEN
Staff Writer
Organizers of drumSTRONG, an event held last weekend to benefit cancer, say the drum circle they held lasted 25 hours. They have submitted an application and video of the entire circle to Guinness World Records.
A spokesman said Guinness officials have received the application and expect to render a decision within four to six weeks. No current record for longest continuous drum circle exists, the spokesman said.
drumSTRONG, held at Weddington's Misty Meadows Farm, raised money for the Levine Children's Hospital in Charlotte and Lance Armstrong Foundation. Organizer Scott Swimmer had not tallied the funds raised as of Thursday.
The Charlotte Observer
Around the Region
Union County
Drummer group submits bid for endurance record to Guinness
Organizers of drumSTRONG, an event held last weekend to benefit cancer, say the drum circle they held lasted 25 hours. They have submitted an application and video of the entire circle to Guinness World Records.
A spokesman said Guinness officials have received the application and expect to render a decision within four to six weeks. No record for longest continuous drum circle exists, the spokesman said.
DrumSTRONG, held at Weddington's Misty Meadows Farm, raised money for the Levine Children's Hospital and the Lance Armstrong Foundation. Organizer Scott Swimmer had not tallied the funds raised as of Thursday. -- Ryan basen
Posted on Sun, May. 13, 2007 Anita Grey
The Charlotte Observer
Beating drums, beating cancer
Providence Day senior Mason Swimmer inspires fundraiser
Like a commingling of heartbeats, the rhythmic sounds of drums punctuated the air long before we got to the site in Weddington last weekend.
People had come by the hundreds to beat the drums. They came even though it was raining, and they stayed through the night.
It was all for drumSTRONG, a drum•a•thon meant to shine light on cancer, and, according to organizer Scott Swimmer, "beat cancer" by making people aware of the symptoms and the possibilities for survival.
Last Saturday and Sunday, people ventured out to the field set up with drums so participants could drum all night. Tents were pitched, visiting musicians played, and a health fair provided information. Money raised went to LiveStrong (the Lance Armstrong Foundation) and Levine Children's Hospital.
The inspiration for drumSTRONG is Mason Swimmer, son of Scott and Carola Swimmer. Mason, a senior at Providence Day, was diagnosed in 2004 at age 15 with osteosarcoma. The disease was discovered after he was injured playing baseball. When his bruising and pain didn't go away, doctors discovered the cancer in his leg.
After multiple treatments and operations, including knee replacement, Mason's will to live and "sense of normalcy" have helped make him a survivor, Scott Swimmer says. "He was never NOT going to be a survivor," says his father. He "simply refused to consider any other alternative."
Greatly gratified by the response to drumSTRONG this year, Swimmer says drumSTRONG will be an annual happening, with many more people and organizations already inquiring to participate in the next one. Interest has been sparked nationwide, with other communities joining in to focus on the issues surrounding cancer.
As an offshoot of drumSTRONG, Scott Swimmer organized DrumsforCures,Inc. to bring rhythm into children's hospitals and to work with schools to help children with illness remain active and have a normal life at school.
The website www.drumstrong.org offers opportunities for people to get more information, volunteer or support the cause in various ways.
Posted on Sun, May. 13, 2007
The Charlotte Observer
MISTY MEADOWS FARM
Drummers unite in fight against cancer
Circle plays for 25 consecutive hours with over 1000 participants
As a few hundred people seated behind him banged on drums and large orange buckets the afternoon of May 5, Arthur Hull turned to a reporter and bellowed:
"This ain't no hippie drum circle."
Indeed it wasn't. This drum circle had a purpose: Unite people in rhythm against cancer.
It had been organized to draw people to Misty Meadows Farm in Weddington to learn about cancer and raise funds for cancer research.
Charlotte's Scott Swimmer planned the circle for drumSTRONG, an event held May 5-6 in honor of his son Mason, an 18-year-old who battled cancer in his leg for more than a year. Mason was cleared last year.
drumSTRONG also featured a health fair and performances by live bands. But its core was the drum circle, which Swimmer said lasted for 25 consecutive hours.
About 100 people drummed at its 4:54 p.m. start May 5 and Swimmer said 400 were there at its peak the next afternoon. According to Swimmer, a dozen kept it going in the wee hours of the morning May 6 and roughly 200 were drumming when they stopped later that day.
Some drummers used their own drumsticks and drums; others pounded on the buckets with their hands.
Participants included the Swimmer family and Matthew Reynolds, a Charlotte 12-year-old who was named 2006 Boy of the Year by the Charlotte chapter of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Matthew, who battled leukemia for more than two years, had his final treatment April 27.
Swimmer said Brandon Elam, a Stallings 16-year-old who has battled cancer since October 2004, also participated.
Hull, twice named "Best Drum Circle Facilitator" by Drum Magazine, led the circle.
Volunteers captured it on video, which Swimmer is using as documentation to establish a Guinness World Record for longest continuous drum circle. Guinness had no such record in its database, a spokesman said, but it has received Swimmer's application. Guinness officials should decide if a record was set within four to six weeks, the spokesman said.
Regardless of that decision, Swimmer called the first drumSTRONG a success. He plans to make it an annual event.
Donations for the Levine Children's Hospital and Lance Armstrong Foundation, the two organizations drumSTRONG supports, are still being accepted at www.drumstrong.org or by contacting Swimmer at scott@drumstrong.org.
ryan basen