Over the last few months, Interlochen has welcomed many gifts to create new scholarship funds. The motivation for each gift is different and each has its own story. Paul and Lois Jordan had not visited Interlochen for many years. As they attended last summer’s performance of Les PrTludes, however, they reflected on their decades long relationship with Interlochen and on the experiences of their family - four children and now a grandchild who had been campers and camp staff. Then and there, the Jordans made a decision.

When Peter Erskine, a celebrated drummer and an Academy alumnus returned to campus to celebrate 40 years of jazz at Interlochen he made a decision too. The accomplished musician who has inspired so many through thousands of recordings, compositions, arrangements, film credits and educational materials wanted another way to reach out and inspire young artists at Interlochen.

Last year Patricia and Ryszard Nawrocki drove through the intense summer heat from New Mexico to Interlochen. After a few days at Interlochen, strolling the campus and taking meals with campers at Stone Center, they shared the story of their son’s love for Interlochen and the difference it made in his life.

The Jordans, Erskine, and the Nawrockis each decided to create a named scholarship to benefit Interlochen students because they understand that talent is found in young artists from all socio-economic backgrounds and want to make an Interlochen experience available to any deserving student. Others seek to help Interlochen continue to recruit students with the highest level of talent and understand that scholarship dollars are often needed to bring these young artists to Interlochen.

Many also use scholarships to celebrate the lives of those who exemplify the spirit of creativity and vitality that comes with a passion for the arts - someone like Kelly Muzzi. She attended Camp in 1999 and 2000 as a theatre major. While at Camp she also took voice and cello lessons, painted artwork that was displayed in the gallery, and danced.

"Kelly absolutely loved Camp," says her mother, Andrea Thorne, "and planned to pursue a career in theatre, acting, directing and teaching."

According to those who knew her, Kelly was a humanitarian as well as an artist. She won a Champion of Diversity Award in 2001 from the Birmingham-Bloomfield Task Force on Race Relations and Ethnic Diversity and an Eleanor Roosevelt Award from her high school in 2002. In her junior year at Bennington College, which she chose because it reminded her of Interlochen, Kelly worked with AIDS orphans in Kenya. In 2005, back at Bennington, she was the victim of a tragic accident.

"The last action she performed before leaving her dorm room that fateful day," Thorne relates, "was to send her proposal for her senior project to her advisor. She planned to write a play and direct a performance about some of the issues that plague the Detroit area - racism, poverty, lack of reliable public transportation. Through theatre, she wanted to inspire thoughtful dialogue that would improve the lives of those who are in need."

After her death, Kelly’s family wanted to memorialize the quality of her life. They wrote: "She worked to eliminate barriers between people because she saw so few herself. The arts were her method of expression; she was truly fearless in her approach to living. She was strongly present in each moment. She was captivated by ideas of social justice, peace, environmental responsibility, healthy livingand always open to learning more."

In December, 2007, Kelly’s family established the Kelly Muzzi Memorial Scholarship at Interlochen to preserve her memory and to inspire other young actor/humanitarians wishing to attend Camp. The scholarship is, they say, "a way Kelly’s life continues to inspire others, and it helps her family feel that her spirit of service continues in the world."

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