We recently had the chance to connect with Carol Rosenstein and have shared our conversation below.
Good morning Carol, it’s such a great way to kick off the day – I think our readers will love hearing your stories, experiences and about how you think about life and work. Let’s jump right in? What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
I paint in my free time. My art touches my inner child. It takes me into a sandpit of total freedom and joy. The creative process lives in a dreamlike space where anything is possible. Art teaches me a sense of self abandon that translates into what I do in the professional world as a visionary. It’s directly related and connected to creating a global nonprofit where dreams and ideas manifest.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am the founder of Music Mends Minds. I started my nonprofit in 2014 as a way to help my husband Irwin, who was struggling with dementia. After years of watching him gradually slip away, I enrolled him in the UCLA Alzheimer’s and Dementia Patient Care Program. While he was playing piano for parents and students in the program it became clear that the music empowered him. Irwin became more aware, responsive, confident, energetic, talkative and hopeful. After witnessing this dramatic transformation in Irwin’s condition I was inspired to start a band to help others with neurodegenerative diseases and The 5th Dementia band was born.
MMM now has bands and drum circles throughout Southern California and nationally. We’ve hosted 25 concerts and partnered with Rotary International. During Covid, we expanded globally by creating a Zoom platform that meets triweekly led by a board-certified music therapist and features a mix of sing-alongs, solos and guest performers. MMM’s groups foster a community between the musicians and singers, as well as their families, friends, and caregivers, all of whom thrive on socialization and music making.
Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
As a child, one might be scared or apprehensive. But I believe that’s part of being a child. As an adult we learn to recognize our limitations and realize that we have limitless potential and that there’s no place for fear.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
I believe we’re capable of doing anything we put our minds to with enough energy behind this statement anything and everything is possible. There are no limits.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
It’s a lie to say that our community of seniors suffering from neurodegenerative diseases can’t learn new things like new songs, embracing music to comfort them, to excite them, to bring joy to them, because music has proven that these potential lies are completely untrue. Our seniors can be empowered. They continue to and continue to be educated in the world of music because of the vibrational relationship that music brings to their brains. It’s a lie that people with neurodegenerative diseases need to be written off. Music is a tool to unlock their potential and when everyone wants to write them off, you still have potential to change your trajectory from darkness to light.
Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
I’m doing what I was born to do. I have no regrets. I am humbled by the gift that I was given, the gift of supporting those suffering from diseases that have no cure. I feel like this is an ordination. I understand the enormity of the gift that my husband Irwin brought to me. We were able to find a way to share the gift of music with humanity suffering from diseases with no cure because music can light the way for everyone. It changes our mood and disposition. Music unlocks happy chemicals in our brain. These chemicals allow us to move through suffering and bring joy back into our lives and increase brain function. Musical memories, unlock vivid memories from days gone by when other memories are lost even in Alzheimer’s cases. Music unlocks memories of yesterday year for patients to fully experience moments as if they were back in time. Music puts a song in your heart and brings a smile to your lips.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.musicmendsminds.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/musicmendsmindsorg
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MusicMendsMinds
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@musicmendsmindsinc.4744
