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| WEBSITE & CONTENTS COPYRIGHTED - JOHNNY PRILL MUSIC - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED |
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| By TRACI L. WEISENBACH Tribune Staff Writer BAD AXE — Music and volunteering have been two very important pieces of Johnny Prill’s life since he was a boy. This year, he’s receiving a special honor for doing both at Courtney Manor for 25 years. Kay Peruski, Courtney Manor administrator, nominated Prill for the Health Care Association of Michigan Volunteer of the Year Award, and the association chose Prill to receive the distinction. He and his family will attend an award ceremony at Soaring Eagle Casino Oct. 3. Prill said he’s very honored to receive the recognition. “I couldn’t believe it,” he said. “It doesn’t get better than this — it’s something you don’t expect. It’s emotional and a little bit overwhelming. There are so many great volunteers out there who do such a great job.” “Johnny comes faithfully on the last Thursday of each month to entertain our residents by playing his accordion and singing,” Peruski said. “Johnny has been a loyal and devoted volunteer.” Prill, who plays the accordion, also performs every Christmas Eve with several of his family members. His father, John, plays bass, his brother, Chris, plays the violin and his brother, Dan, plays the drums. His wife, Patricia, and his children — Misty, Sarah, Jennifer and Johnny — also are part of the concert. Peruski said it’s heartwarming to know the Prill family is so willing to share their Christmas Eve with Courtney Manor residents. “It’s a big sacrifice for them to make,” she said. For the past few years, on Grandparents’ Day weekend, Prill performs a free outdoor concert at Courtney Manor. He once again is joined by family members who perform with him. One of the songs performed is the National Grandparents Day song, which Prill wrote. The song is called “A Song for Grandma and Grandpa.” “The concert continues to be a huge hit in our community and the numbers in attendance continue to grow with many community members and family members joining our residents for an afternoon of music and refreshments,” Peruski said. “It is so much fun to see how excited the residents are when making their way outdoors to the concert and being joined by family and friends under the big tent.” Peruski said Prill also has generously given away CDs he has recorded to residents, staff and family members. She said she has often wondered what brings Prill back each month and each Christmas Eve and Grandparents’ Day. “But I guess you only have to look at the smiles he brings to the faces of our residents, and their toes tapping and hands clapping, to see that the reward he receives is priceless,” she said. Prill said volunteering always has been important for his family. “I was raised a volunteer,” he said. “I started at 8 years old. My family always helped out when we could.” Playing music at Courtney Manor is a very rewarding way to volunteer, he said. “If you can entertain and bring smiles to people’s faces, that’s what it’s all about,” he said. “When I strike up a song, people react to it. (They) appreciate and enjoy the music. It’s great.” He said he’s always enjoyed coming to Courtney Manor. He started volunteering there when his grandmother, Vera Will, was a resident there. “It feels like home every time you come here,” he said. “They’ve been very gracious.” Prill and his family are gearing up for the fourth annual Grandparents’ Day concert from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Sept. 11. Sophie Brown, a 9-year-old from Caro, will be performing the Grandparents’ Day song. A gospel quartet, Not Ashamed, also will be performing. The public is invited to the concert. Recently, Prill received a phone call from someone in New York who stated the Grandparents’ Day song could be a part of an upcoming television special about Sept. 11 and Grandparents’ Day, which fall on the same day this year. “It would be an honor for the song to represent the nation,” he said. Another exciting development for Prill this year was being notified that a song he wrote about Bobby Vinton’s life will be on Jimmy Sturr’s next CD. The frosting on the cake, though, was Prill becoming a grandfather for the first time this year, when his daughter, Sarah, and her husband, Richard, had twins — Logan and Summer — Aug. 11. “The Grandparents’ Day song has a whole new meaning,” Prill said with a grin. Between being a new grandfather, receiving the volunteer award and the upcoming Grandparents’ Day concert, Prill is very excited. “It’s all coming together for one big celebration,” he said. |
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| Photos from the award ceremony at Soaring Eagle Casino! |
