Hessie Mae Cash Parham
Hessie Mae Cash Parham sang with Lafayette Music Stars and All Stars Singers, and at Oakland School for the Arts. She now works at the Black-owned Town Fare Cafe at the Oakland Museum of California, and is a certified College Coach and Mentor for PeerForward, a college prep program serving under-resourced high school students. Hessie has two AAs from the College of Alameda, where she studied to be a social worker.
What’s the best part of singing and choir for you?
Hessie Mae: I love the community of it all. You’re learning your part, but at the end of the day you’re a team. It’s a family no matter if you know them or not. When we did the alumni Zoom call, it was a lot of people I’d never seen before, but because of this program I felt so connected to them instantly. It’s the same if you’re the audience, a piano player, or a staff member, or a mom, a driver, someone making sandwiches… No matter how small your role, 25 years is a lot.
What is your favorite Cantare memory?
Hessie Mae: All of the trips to Disneyland. My family couldn’t ever afford it, so it was always a reminder that I made it, made it somewhere.
We also sang for senior citizens. Those were some of the beautifulest times of my life, because it felt like I was really doing something for them. Helping them through music. People think of Oakland as a bad place and don’t think about the beauty people from this city bring.
What’s the #1 thing you’ve taken forward from Cantare into the rest of your life?
Hessie Mae: When I was in choir, a lot of us were going through a lot in life, and didn’t come from the best backgrounds. Choir was literally the only place we had to be safe. I try to provide that feeling wherever I go, and give back those feelings and places of comfort, that sense of Safety, Care and Community.
Alumni Spotlight
Ryan Chen
Ryan Chen started singing with Cantare as a kindergartener at Lincoln Elementary in Oakland’s Chinatown, and continued to sang with Lincoln Music Stars and Nova. Ryan graduated from UC Irvine in 2023. He works as a Mechanical Engineer with Northrup Grumann, while completing a Master’s Degree in Engineering Management at UCLA.
What’s the best part of singing and choir for you?
Ryan: My whole childhood was singing. From singing in Nova all throughout middle school and high school, I have met the most inspirational and loving friends who I can call family without hesitation. Nova changed my life by giving me a family who I could depend on, laugh with, and most importantly they accepted me for who I am.
What is your favorite Cantare memory?
Ryan: The Sing-A-Mile-High Festival in Denver in 2014 gave me a bigger look at how big the choral singing world is. I didn’t realize it before! I felt proud that I was in this amazing program, too. It was great to see so many choirs out there giving all these students a family, helping them learn about music and enjoy music.
What’s the #1 thing you’ve taken forward from Cantare into the rest of your life?
Ryan: Nova made socializing and social awareness easier. Being with all the bigger kids in Nova and then becoming the bigger kid, was such a huge learning curve for me that I brought to college and my workplace. Everyone is coming from a different walk of life. Especially in my workplace now, I’m one of the youngest people again, but Nova made it easier for me to put myself out there and tell people how I am, and not be afraid to show them who I am.
Dayana Merino
Dayana Merino was born and raised in West Oakland. She sang with Lafayette Music Stars, All Stars Singers, and Nova. She earned a BA in Psychology and a Masters in Counseling with specialization in K-12 Schools from SF State, and is now a school counselor in Oakland schools. Dayana sings with Cantare’s adult Chorale and serves on our Board of Directors.
What’s the best part of singing and choir for you?
Dayana: Expressing myself: I sing when I am happy, sad, mad, and confused. And singing brings me joy that I am creating something wonderful with a group of people. I always leave choir with a big smile on my face and my soul filled!
What is your favorite Cantare memory?
Dayana: Performing with All Stars at Oakland’s Woodminster Amphitheater in 2006, and watching the adult choir sing a Rogers & Hammerstein medley that captured my heart. I remember thinking, One day I’m going to sing with them. That’s my dream. Years later, I joined the adult choir and sang that exact medley that I fell so desperately in love with!
What’s the #1 thing you’ve taken forward from Cantare into the rest of your life?
Dayana: Cantare is a family. The entire organization puts so much love and support into the children’s programs! Chorale singers Bobbi and Don Scott came to see me perform in my first high school musical. Julie has always had space for me when I needed a shoulder to lean on. It takes a village to raise a child; they were my village. It brings me so much happiness to pay forward the support and love I received to the next generation.