An annual storytelling event in Saratoga Springs has grown into a new location in its fifth year.
TrueSongs began at Caffè Lena in 2019 and has been highlighting the work of regional nonprofits since. For the first time, it’s moving to the Spa Little Theater.
Executive Director Sarah Craig says the event is an evolution of Caffè Lena On The Road – where touring musicians who stopped at the famous venue would play at nonprofits in the area.
“They’re sharing experiences where they had a heavy, hard situation on their hands and they reached out to a nonprofit organization for help and through the resources they were able to find there they were able to rebound and move forward with their lives. And I think that we all know that these kinds of things are happening around us all the time, but we very rarely get a chance to see it,” said Craig.
This year, the event has paired songwriters with locals whose lives have been positively impacted by the work of organizations like WAIT House and the Alzheimer’s Association of Northeastern New York.
Craig says there’s an importance to hearing first-hand accounts.
“To not think of it as just—a kind of social problem that’s out there in the world and we need to make laws or policies, or direct tax dollars to it. But when you’re actually hearing the emotional impact on one person it brings it alive in a whole different way. And it stirs compassion and understanding,” said Craig.
Gwen Rowland is a Program Outrach Manager for the Alzheimer’s Association of Northeastern New York.
“You know it’s through individual’s stories, through their passion with whatever they face related to this disease, this is how we increase awareness of the disease. This is how we create spaces and environments where people feel like they can talk about their experience with Alzheimer’s,” said Rowland.
For Rowland, an event like TrueSongs is a touching way to rally support for the volunteers who are a pillar of her organization.
“You know 11 million people in this country are unpaid caregivers o those with the disease and we know over 7 million people are living with the disease. So, by being able to share the stories of Alzheimer’s, and particularly how the Alzheimer’s Association has impacted people’s journey, it just makes it real and relatable like it is for so many people, said Rowland.
Carolyn Shapiro has been working with Caffè Lena for years to help organize previous TrueSongs events, but this is her first year as one of the songwriters.
“I am working with a woman named Marcia, she’s a Brazilian immigrant. She kind of got involved in this through Tri-County Literacy which is a local nonprofit organization that helps teach adults to speak and read and write English. So, it’s an amazing service. And her story is just about the struggles of moving to a new country and not being able to speak the language and how hard it is just to exist and how disconnecting it can be,” said Shapiro.
Shapiro says there were some challenges to get to a final song everyone was happy with, but she’s grateful to have been involved.
“It got me to really think about how important language is because I think it’s something we take for granted, at least I do, because I live in a place where I can communicate and so it was definitely life changing to hear her story and to try to take that difficulty and turn it into a song,” said Shapiro.
TrueSongs kicks off Saturday at 7 p.m.