White Pines Academy brings that good ‘ol festive feeling

Students put on Christmas concert in Barrie Students at White Pines Academy in Barrie put months of work into a Christmas concert.

Students from White Pines Academy in Barrie have been busy in more ways than one.

Along with their day-to-day activities, the group has been practicing its musical skills since September to put on an intimate Christmas Concert for friends and family.

The academy, which operates out of the Hiway Church on Anne Street North, is a development centre for adults with autism and/or intellectual disabilities.

Performed live on Thursday, the festive three song set included classics like Silent Night and Jingle Bells.

“We have Liam playing the xylophone, Zach playing his guitar, Blake on the piano and the shaker; Devlin as lead singer, and Mikey on the shakers as well,” said the academy’s program director.

A few of the students take music lessons outside of the school and the program director has worked with their music teachers and parents to provide an opportunity to build on their musical skills in a structured classroom setting.

“It’s an important lesson we all learned while partaking in music class and preparing for the concert, is that there is no ‘I’ in team. We all have an important role to play and each of us are an integral part of a whole,” she added.

White Pines Academy offers a number of programs for adults with varying needs, including Drop-In Wednesdays. More information is available online.