Instrumental Group
As students return to classrooms, some will pick up musical instruments for the first time in months. In Charleston County schools, one nonprofit with a mission of "building musical communities" is working to keep students playing year-round while fostering a new generation of performers.
Founded in late 2023 by longtime music manager Bunky Odom, Rock N Roll Rescue provides new and refurbished instruments free of charge to children ages nine to 14 throughout the Charleston area. The organization gained nonprofit status in February 2024, made its first donations to six children at Baptist Hill Middle School in 2025, and has gone on to make dozens of other deliveries throughout the Lowcountry.
Through the rescue, instruments are given directly to a student to keep, something Odom stresses as more meaningful than a loaner from the school. "That instrument now belongs to them," he says. "They can take it home and play it all summer, even if it may drive their parents a little crazy."
In May, the nonprofit donated five new instruments to students at Allegro Charter School of Music during a presentation featuring Charlton Singleton, vocalist and trumpeter for the local Grammy-winning Gullah band Ranky Tanky.
The nonprofit partnered with Darius Rucker for last year's Riverfront Revival and participated in fundraising efforts during April's High Water music festival, raising nearly $100,000 between the two events.
Looking ahead, Odom hopes to raise funds for a dedicated repair shop and plans to establish a community scholarship fund. "I've received so many thank-you notes from kids telling me what they want to do in life. It's wonderful to go to a school and see a kid whose parents can't afford to buy an instrument get one in their hands. It'll bring a tear to your eye."
Read in Charleston Magazine
