During the past school year, Joelton Middle School’s Chorus was having trouble finding its voice. Some of the students were so shy, they wouldn’t sing at all. Their teachers knew they needed a bit of inspiration.
Enter Lemmonstine Poindexter or Lemon for short. Lemon works as a customer relations supervisor at NES, but she’s also a recording gospel artist, certified life coach, author, mentor and founder of the National Barren Women’s Support Groups.
“Two of my sisters are teachers at the school and felt the students could benefit by hearing from someone in the community,” Lemon said. “When students see a person from the outside wanting to help, it’s important. It’s good to know that the community cares.”
Lemon started with the basics. She used vocal exercises to connect with students and get them comfortable singing in a group and in front of others. Slowly, she started seeing their confidence build and progressed to monthly afternoon choir practices.
“Music just does something for me,” Lemon said. “It doesn’t matter the genre, there’s just something about it. Music helps you express emotions whether you’re happy, mad or sad.”
With a new school year underway, Lemon is ready to help these students’ voices reach new heights.
“I’ve kind of adopted the school,” she said. “NES is very involved in the public school system, and I hope the spirit of giving back continues to spread.”
NES employees volunteer countless hours at Metro Nashville Public Schools including Glenn Enhanced Option Elementary and Maplewood High School’s Academy of Energy & Power.
Tags: