FARMINGTON, Minnesota — It may be hard to believe that a high school band program wouldn't jump at the chance to get a vintage Steinway — appraised around $80,000 — for free but when the offer came in to Farmington High School over the summer, the staff had its doubts.
"I got this call and I was like, 'Okay, move the e-mail on or whatever,'" recalled Erin Holmes, director of bands at Farmington High School. "Then I got a text message from one of my friends and her kids are in my band program and I've known her forever and she was like, 'Hey, there's this piano that wants to get donated to the school and it's a Steinway.' And I'm like, 'Okay, I'll look into it but there's a lot of scams out there."
Bradley Mariska, associate director of bands, also didn't want to get played.
"As awesome as that might sound to the average person, this is a famous scam that targets musicians and music educators," Mr. Mariska said. "We get messages all the time, either in our e-mail or social media, saying, 'Hey, we're giving away this grand piano.'"
Mr. Mariska said often a scammer will then try to gain personal information or charge for delivery, only for the piano to never show up.
"We heard crickets. Nobody would return our calls or emails," said Tracee Gilmore, who was entrusted with the piano (more on that later). Tracee's husband, Keith Gilmore, even brought the paperwork to the school.
Soon, a game of telephone started where friends of friends passed along the message of the baby grand piano until it made its way back to Ms. Holmes.
"Got in touch with Tracee and Keith and I was like, 'Oh, you want to give us an actual Steinway? What?!" Ms. Holmes recalled.
According to the Gilmores, the 1914 Steinway was last appraised around $80,000 and Keith believes it's now worth much more. At one point, it had been restored.
"In the music world, there's Steinway piano and then there's everything else," Mr. Mariska said.
But soon Farmington High School realized they had an even greater gift on their hands.
Lori Williams
Enter Lori Williams.
"My mom was a very musical person. I'd say that might be the first way that she would define herself growing up. I always knew that she was in a good mood if I could hear her singing or playing her piano — the piano that was donated was actually the piano that she played when she was growing up," said Barbara Nickel, Williams' daughter.
Williams may have started with the piano but it grew into a lifelong passion for music, whether she was playing the alto saxophone, flute, mandolin, guitar or singing.
After graduation, she moved to Los Angeles and started a band called The Lost Angels. During her career, she worked with some famous artists.
"Pachyderm Recording Studio that my dad started, and then my mom helped him a lot with that. Then they blossomed in their beginnings of their relationship together doing that. She did some recording there, as well," Nickel said.
The recording studio in Cannon Falls, now under different ownership, is where Nirvana recorded their third and final studio album, In Utero.
"She was very committed, very committed to music," Nickel said.
Just shy of her 65th birthday, Williams died in March at her home in Northfield.
"She is, I would say, fiery, bold, brilliant, pure talent. You know anything she worked on, she was just over the top successful in it," said Tracee, Williams' best friend.
When Williams died, Tracee became the trustee of her estate. She, along with Williams' three children, were trying to decide what to do with the Steinway.
"The biggest thing for all of us was that we don't want it to just sit and not be played because she wouldn't have wanted that," Nickel said.
Tracee added, "I asked the kids, they said, 'Well, what if we donate it to Farmington High School and Madden's friends could enjoy it?' And they said, 'That's it.'"
Madden McKean
The Gilmores' grandson, Madden McKean, died at just 13 years old.
"Touched a lot of people's lives. Continues to do so," said Madden's dad, Joe McKean. "Sure does," added Madden's mom, Lindsay Koran.
Madden died on May 27, 2023.
"He was out riding his bike just like a normal day, just around the block, and something happened... we think a medical issue... and then fell and hit his head so hard and was out," Koran recalled.
After his passing, McKean and Koran started to hear stories from kids about how Madden impacted their lives.
"Speaking for myself, I had no idea. There's so many stories and he always talked about his best friend and it was so many people. They all reciprocated that same statement," McKean said.
Madden loved to play sports, including football, basketball and golf. He also had a strong faith in God and would often say, "Trust God, even when it's hard."
"I had never heard it and his friend said he said it all the time," Koran said.
Koran added, "Just a complete stranger, he'd be kind to… that's why we all just try and 'Live Like Madden.'"
Farmington High School
Even though Madden didn't play any instruments, he loved music and left a big impression on his classmates.
When the Steinway arrived, so did the class of 2028.
"The current class of 9th graders is the grade that he was in and a lot of his friends are coming to the high school now," Mr. Mariska explained.
"It's just different without having some of his energy in the high school," Freshman Ty Vanwechel said.
Both Vanwechel and fellow freshman Henry Holmes are in band class where the piano gets used often.
"A week can change a lot. A day can change a lot. That's kind of how I viewed it after he passed," Holmes said.
The Steinway now sits in the Farmington High School band room with a plaque on the piano that reads, "Donated by the Lori B. Williams Estate in honor of Madden McKean, August 2024." Below that, reads a quote from Madden that says, "Blend in when you have to, stand out when you can."
As Farmington's Wind Ensemble played during a class this past November, Tracee and Keith watched from the sidelines.
With tears in her eyes, Tracee said, "Very overwhelmed. It's the first time I've seen the piano out of Lori's house and it's just profound."
Ms. Holmes said they will never not tell the stories of Lori and Madden, saying, "I see a lot of other kids that come down here that aren't in band and they know about Madden and they want to feel close to them. I think that that's really special."
"Music is not just about the music you make for yourself," Mr. Mariska said. "Music is always better when you have a chance to share it with others. So that their gift could now become our gift is the greatest gift."
The Madden McKean Foundation supports youth by providing scholarships to them and their families to further their education or to develop their athletic talents. To date, the foundation has given $11,000 in scholarships and community donations. The donations have benefited both Farmington High School and Blackduck High School students. Ultimately, the foundation continues to spread Madden's legacy by encouraging others to Live Like Madden. You can learn more about the foundation, here.