The Causeway Giants 'Rock' the Town Hall

The group was formed from the Ballymoney Community Resource Centre Rock School, in association with the Ossia School of Music. The idea for Rock School began when a young disabled man on work experience at the Community Resource Centre spontaneously sang, striking employees with his talent.

They applied to Unlimited, a Belfast foundation funding entrepeneurs' community projects and sourced tutors from Ossia to help run a week long Rock School music program. At the end of the week, they performed an eight song set at the Town Hall in front of approximately 35 people, including the Deputy Mayor, their friends and family.

The musicians Conor Boyce, Gareth Burton, Ciara Handforth, Alan McCandless, Sonya McCook, Stacey McCook, Heather McKillop, Caitlin Morgan, Harley Mulholland and Stephanie Stewart sang, two of them played the base guitar and one played the drums.

They would like The Causeway Giants to stay together and plan to record their songs in a recording studio.

The musicians performed contemporary hits such as Joe McElderry's 'The Climb' and Northern Ireland favourites such as 'I'll Tell Me Ma,' that were familiar to them, Ossia tutors and the audience.

Out of the eight physically or mentally disabled musicians, three were blind and the others had dyslexia, hydrocephalus, spina bifida and cerebal palsy respectively. Furthermore, they performed alongside two non disabled young people.

Community Outreach Worker Angela Mulholland says: "It was a very moving, special event because musicians both with and without special needs performed together, their 'differences' taking a backseat."

The young people benefited from the experience because,"Former friendships were strengthened and new ones were formed. “Furthermore, their confidence increased enormously as the week progressed. At the start of the week the teenagers were reluctant to participate but they soon began to look forward to each new day. By the performance, their voices were strong and they were excited to work as a team."

These sorts of opportunities are important because,"young people with special needs deserve the same chances as everybody else. Their talent should not be overlooked because of their disability but it is difficult for people to see past their disability."

If parents think this initiative would be beneficial for their teenager, they should contact Ballymoney Community Resource Centre. "If more young people participate it will increase support from funders and members of the community for Rock School."

What was the most rewarding part of the experience for this Community Outreach Worker? "I gained as much from the program as the young people! When they were on stage, their smiles and enthusiasm were incredible. They worked hard, tried their best and knew how much they had achieved. When the audience clapped, even the blind musicians knew the effect they had on the audience. Their smiles were radiant."