1. CHARTWELL’S
E-NEWSLETTER
Issue 16 • July 2014
PASSION FOR MUSIC SPARKS A RESTORATION PROJECT
Two years ago, David Larson became Maintenance
Manager at Chartwell Imperial Place, and it wasn’t long
before residents discovered his hidden talent. David,
originally from Regina, Saskatchewan, has been playing
violin since the age of 7, a hobby he says allows him
to emotionally express himself beyond the limitations
of language. “It can be very cathartic,” explains David,
who plays everything from classical to popular jazz, and
most recently Scottish dance music with the Vancouver
Fiddle Orchestra. He recalls the first time he played for
residents: “It had been quite a long time since I performed
as a soloist, but the residents were the warmest,
most supportive audience I could have hoped for.”
Impressed by his flair for the violin, Lance Walters, resident at Chartwell Imperial Place, approached
David. Lance, too, had been an avid violinist since age 9; however, an accident many years ago
had left his violin in pieces and he never bothered to repair it. The broken violin, coming apart
at the seams, still sat in the bottom of his closet, carefully wrapped in an old pillow case and
untouched for nearly 70 years. The timing was perfect as David had recently taken up violin
restoration as a hobby. David was quick to propose the idea of helping Lance restore his beloved
violin. “My goal was to mentor Lance and have him do as much of the restoration as he was
physically able to do,” says David. With the approval of Karl Berg, General Manager at Imperial
Place, David spent the last half hour of every shift for three weeks working with Lance on the
restoration. “It quickly became apparent that we were not only repairing the violin, but restoring
memories of a time in Lance’s life that he cherished,” says David. After gluing all the cracks and
separated joints back together, sanding it down and giving it two coats of varnish, cutting a new
bridge and stringing it up with a new tailpiece, the violin was complete and ready for use!
Wondering what to do with the violin,
David conducted some research
and found a Vancouver inner-city
music program that teaches music to
underprivileged children at no charge.
They were dumbfounded to learn that
the program is conducted and held at a
Church in Vancouver that Lance actually
attended as a child. They took it as a
sign, and without hesitation, donated the
violin to the St. James Music Academy,
where it will go a long way in teaching
young children the benefits of music and
helping them find their passion in life.
DO YOU HAVE A GREAT STORY OR PHOTO TO SUBMIT FOR THE RENDEZVOUS EXPRESS?
PLEASE SEND ALL SUGGESTIONS TO:
Danielle Scheinman,Communications Manager (English)
dscheinman@chartwell.com
www.chartwell.comPatricia Lemoine,Communications Manager (French)
plemoine@chartwell.com VISIT US ONLINE TODAY!