The CHIME program is alive and well in New Mexico! Last June, the Area XI Board voted to purchase four additional sets of handchimes. We already had one set that was shared among the five States! Our bank account was strong enough that we could afford to purchse a set for each State.

New Mexico's set arrived in late August. No schools had applied for the three octave set of Malmark handchimes - so State Chair Linda Maloney decided that she would develop a program at an elementary school just 10 minutes from her home.

Linda met no resistance when she approached the school's principal, MC Rosenberger. Linda was very well prepared to tell MC all about handchimes (the AGEHR, the grant program, a copy of "Overtones," the opportunities for the kids) when she met with Principal Rosenberger for the first time. MC barely let two sentences come from Linda's mouth! "Let's do it! Just do it! I want this for the kids at South Mountain NOW!" As is turns out, MC was a handbell ringer at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque when Gail Downey was the director there! 'Nuf said! If you have ever played under Gail's baton, you are forever "in love" with handbells! And that is what made it so easy to introduce the CHIME program to South Mountain Elementary School.

The kids meet twice a week - on Tuesday and Thursday mornings BEFORE school. No grade or school credit is given for their participation. Principal Rosenberger hopes that will change next year. Her goal is to have a handchime program as part of the regular curriculum.

Check out the activity in these pictures from the Winter Concert at South Mountain. Enjoy! You haven't seen the last of these enthusiastic chimers. Plans are well underway to travel to Colorado Springs for the VERY FIRST Young Ringers Festival in June 2002!

Downbeat for a packed house!
Parents stood six deep around Linda at the conclusion of the concert to find out how to get their kids involved in the Chime Program at South Mountain Elementary School in Edgewood!