By Oregon Coast TODAY
A performance from international concert pianist Jim-Isaac Chua will be the key event in a suite of fund-raising efforts for Habitat for Humanity of Lincoln County, taking place at the Pacific Maritime Heritage Center and Local Ocean Seafoods in Newport on Saturday, Oct. 18.
Chua, praised by Lani Spahr as “prodigiously talented — with technique to burn,” will present “Shaped by Chopin” at the center’s Doerfler Family Theater. The evening will celebrate the music of Frédéric Chopin and the universal need for a place to call home.
VIP tickets can enjoy premium seating and a private pre-concert reception with the artist, complete with wine, cheeses and a charcuterie board. The fund-raiser will include a silent auction featuring an overnight getaway package in Bellingham, Wash., a necklace from S&J Jewelers valued at $1,500 and other exciting items. Guests will also have an opportunity to participate in a wine pull, where they can purchase mystery wines from labels such as The Flying Dutchman and J Wrigley Wines.
Ahead of the concert, Local Ocean Seafoods is hosting a special three-course, family-style meal highlighting the best of the Oregon coast. Guests can also purchase exclusive wine pairings to enhance their meal. Local Ocean will donate a portion of dinner sales and 100 percent of wine pairing sales to the fundraising efforts.
Chopin, one of the world’s most loved piano composers, was born in a Poland that had been erased from the map, divided between the Russian, Prussian and Austrian Empires. In 1830, just before the November Uprising against Russian rule, Chopin left for Vienna. Friends urged him to return and fight, but he chose a different path — to let his music speak for his people. Living in exile, first in Vienna and then in Paris, he filled his works with Polish dances, folk rhythms and poetry. His music carried so much pride and hope that during World War II, the Nazis banned it from being played in occupied Poland.
Chopin’s story shows that home is more than a building. It’s the place where we belong, where our memories are made, and where our spirit is shaped. This belief is also at the heart of Habitat for Humanity’s work — helping families build safe, affordable homes where they can grow and thrive. Just as Chopin’s music kept the spirit of his homeland alive, Habitat works to keep communities strong by giving more people the security of a place to call their own.
For Chua, the idea of home is personal. His journey with Chopin began in 2009, when he first visited Poland to learn more about the composer’s music. Nearly a decade later, he made Poland his home. Since then, he has become part of its musical life, performing in historic venues across the country while continuing to share his music in more than a dozen countries worldwide.
“The beauty of home is that sometimes we find it in the most unexpected places,” he said. “Among people and communities that once felt foreign but have become a part of us.”
Habitat for Humanity of Lincoln County brings together volunteers and community resources to build new residential housing and refurbish existing structures, then sell them to low-income families with an affordable mortgage that meets their income level. It also provides home repairs for low-income families to improve safety and accessibility, helping extend the life of the home and allowing owners to age in place and is actively engaged in disaster recovery work.
Habitat’s ReStores accept donations of building materials, furniture and appliances, and offer them to the community at a low cost, diverting usable and recyclable materials from landfills.
Proceeds from the concert will go directly to Habitat for Humanity to support their work building homes and communities.
Seatings for Saturday’s special meal at Local Ocean Seafoods will be available from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. For reservations, go to localocean.net/news-events.
The Concert for a Cause begins at 7 p.m at the Pacific Maritime Heritage Center, 333 S.E. Bay Blvd., Newport. Tickets are $50 or $75 for VIP and available at habitatlincoln.org.
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