{"id":402200,"date":"2023-11-02T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-11-02T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/?p=402200"},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"-0001-11-29T14:00:00","slug":"Music-for-the-heart-A-fundraiser-of-hope","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/Music-for-the-heart-A-fundraiser-of-hope\/","title":{"rendered":"Music for the heart: A fundraiser of hope"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s a story of perseverance, hope, and family love\u2014all displayed through music this Saturday at the Garapan Central Park\u2014as family members and friends of singer Amber Mendiola-Romolor gather to host the \u201cMusic for the Heart\u201d benefit concert for her, and they\u2019re inviting the community to join them.<\/p>\n

The singer of hit songs Isa Lei, My Baby Boy and Set Me Free, Mendiola-Romolor, was born with Tetralogy of Fallot, a congenital heart defect that combines four complex heart abnormalities. Medical specialists told her parents she wouldn\u2019t live past 18 and that she would never have kids.<\/p>\n

She now has a healthy son and is 33, but her remarkable triumphs also came at a cost. Throughout her life, Mendiola-Romolor has had five open-heart surgeries and four minor surgeries. She was recently told that she would need another open-heart surgery in California before February.<\/p>\n

To fundraise for her medical referral, Mendiola-Romolor\u2019s family is hosting the benefit concert on Nov. 4, 2023 at Garapan Central Park from 6pm to 11pm, with the aim of raising funds for the medical costs, flights and lodging.<\/p>\n

Mendiola-Romolor said she feels quite touched that her family are coming together to hold an event like this, and she knew times are tough on the community, and to get medical referral money is a struggle in its own.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnfortunately, with how the medical referral system is right now I will definitely need to do the fundraisings to basically live, travel, and go there on my own. That\u2019s what it\u2019s kind of come down to,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Mendiola-Romolor was initially opposed to doing any type of medical fundraiser. \u201cThat was really just because I know that the community is suffering a lot, the economy is not the greatest\u2026[and] people are going through different things, but once we actually sat down and really went through what\u2019s needed, it was very clear that I will need to have some sort of fundraiser,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

She said her family suggested a benefit concert. After all, coming from a long line of musicians, that was their niche, Mendiola-Romolor said. Her grandfather was actually one of the original members of a band called TropicSette. Her mother was also a singer in a band, while her father was a lead guitarist, and now she and her siblings a are different forms of artists\u2014mainly musical.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen my family and I were talking about it, we were thinking\u2026[of]\u2026doing a fundraiser [that] also gives back to the community and one of the things that came up was doing a concert because that\u2019s our thing. Our family is all about music. So, when we decided okay, we\u2019re going to do a family concert featuring our family, but we [also] wanted to include other bands,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Other bands, musicians, and vocalists such as Sugar King Band, Los Lobos, Kings and Dreamers, Ace Elameto, Big Jay, and TatzSelepeo will be joining them for the concert.<\/p>\n

Mendiola-Romolor said this would be the first time in years she would sing in a concert again, and that it was special because she would not only sing with her family, but with her children as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to be beautiful because\u2026the bands are family. Some of them are family within the band. Some of them are my family but they have their own band and so this is a family event as well and we\u2019re really excited about it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Some of the numbers she and her family will be playing are songs from the original TropicSette band. \u201cWe\u2019re also going to be playing songs from my album. When I was a teenager, I actually was a part of the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and my wish was to do an album. And so, I went and did an album in Guam and showcased it here in the CNMI and a lot of people loved the music. This is the first time I\u2019m going to be playing the music again in such a long time. It\u2019s been years since I\u2019ve played my own music and so I\u2019m going to be bringing that back to the stage again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yes, the concert is a fundraiser for her medical referral, but Mendiola-Romolor sees it as more than that and she hopes to give back to the community.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are seeing that it\u2019s gaining a lot of traction. A lot of people are very interested in coming out for the cause because I\u2019m also treating it as something bigger than me. Yes, it is to fundraise for my medical referral but at the same time it\u2019s also to bring people together,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

As a build-up toward the event Mendiola-Romolor has been posting promotional videos of her and her siblings singing several music covers.<\/p>\n

This early, Mendiola-Romolor is already grateful to the community. \u201cOur community is so wonderful. And for someone who was born with a heart condition, this is the only thing I\u2019ve ever known all of my life. I didn\u2019t have a normal childhood because I was always in and out of hospitals, I even thought that the hospital was my home. I couldn\u2019t play with other kids, and finally being an adult and being told \u2018Oh you need to go for another heart surgery\u2019 was really scary. But this community has been so supportive; have been giving prayers, and love, and just support in all different kinds of ways. And I just want to thank the community for all they\u2019re doing. And so, I just want to thank the community and praise the community for being so amazing,\u201d she said. \u201cSomebody once told me that the CNMI, regardless of our diverse cultures, is built on love and I\u2019m definitely feeling that now. It\u2019s kind of overwhelming actually.\u201d<\/p>\n

Romolor also thanks her main sponsors, KKMP and Turnkey Solutions, for all their support and help.<\/p>\n

Concert doors open at 5:30pm, and performances start at 6pm until 11pm.<\/p>\n

Tickets are $25 and children under 7 are free. To purchase tickets, contact Mendiola-Romolor through Facebook or email 670amberfundraiser@gmail.com<\/a>. Donations can also be made on her website https:\/\/www.ambermendiolaromolor.com\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Amber Mendiola-Romolor poses with her family.<\/p>\n

-CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
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