96-year-old shares piano talents at hospital

Ninety-one years.

For many, that's more than a lifetime. But for one Brainerd woman, more than nine decades is how long she has been tickling the ivories.

Bea Henderson is 96, and she started playing piano at age 5.

"I was dinging around all the time, trying to play by ear," Henderson said of her musical beginnings. "(My mom) wouldn't let me do that. If she heard me playing by ear, she would get after me. I had to read those notes, so she made me learn how to read notes."

The pianist spoke about her love of music between songs Dec. 17 at Essentia Health-St. Joseph's Medical Center in Brainerd, where she volunteers an hour of her time each Monday to play for staff and visitors.

"I love to play, that's why I'm happy to come here and play," she said. "I know people enjoy it, and I want to bless people."

And bless people she does.

Music dances in the air, trickling down from the second floor and greeting hospital visitors as soon as they walk in the door.

"I see people come in all the time, and some of them dance as they come in the doors," Heather Wermter, who works at the hospital's front desk, said Monday. "I've had people actually come down from the surgery waiting area and say that they're really happy that we have that, because while they're waiting for someone in surgery, it helps them get through the worry."

Hospital volunteer coordinator Deb Anderson dreamed of the day the hospital could house a piano and provide music to the staff and visitors. In a roundabout way and thanks to a generous donation from the Essentia Health St. Joseph’s Medical Center Auxiliary about four and a half years ago, that dream became a reality.

"We had a gal here come and she wanted to play the harp," Anderson said. "She was here for quite a few years, and then the harp got to be too big for her to carry, and I've always-me personally-wanted a piano because I felt that it was a perfect thing."

She knew of the positive effects music can have, especially in a hospital environment.

"Sometimes hearing the piano will make a person feel less anxious and kind of bring that anxiety down a little bit," Anderson said.

And those effects have been apparent.

"A patient's family will come up and say how much it meant to them. It's made their family member feel more at ease," Anderson said, adding a touching story about the piano's great impact.

"There was a patient who had just passed away, and when the family came out of the room afterwards, their family member's song was being played at that moment," she said. "So it made them feel that she's OK."

But the patients and their loved ones aren't the only ones who enjoy the musical benefits.

"It also is for our own staff," Anderson said. "We had a surgeon who, one day, stopped at the piano and asked, 'Do you happen to know this song?' and she said, 'Yeah, I do.'"

The pianist played the requested song as the surgeon paused in the midst of a busy day before performing a surgery.

"And when he came out after surgery, she was still playing the piano and he said, 'Thank you so much. That's what got me through that surgery today,'" Anderson said. "So it helps every day."

Henderson is one of about 20 volunteers who showcases her musical talents at the piano. Last Monday, she spread holiday cheer and filled the air with Christmas favorites like "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" and "Angels We Have Heard on High" as staff, patients and visitors paused while walking by to take in the tunes.

"I feel that this is one way I can serve the Lord," Henderson said. "And I love the piano."

The pianist especially loves playing songs her audience can sing along to and holds a special place in heart for patriot tunes, dubbing "God Bless America" her favorite to play.

After losing two husbands in her life, both military veterans, Henderson finds the songs particularly meaningful.

"When Bea comes and she plays on Veterans Day, you can tell that her passion is there," Anderson said.

That passion for the piano and music in general has built up over the past 91 years, as Henderson began playing piano at church as a young girl in rural Iowa and has now logged about 20 years playing at Community Church of the Nazarene in Merrifield, where she still shares her talents on Sundays.

And for more than 80 years-starting in high school-Henderson has offered her piano expertise to others as a teacher and still leads lessons out of her home.

"You've got to remember that music lasts a lifetime," she said with a smile, explaining how music got her through some tough times in life.

"I lost my mother when I was 18, so that carried me through because I'd go play the piano," she said. "I wouldn't grieve so much. I could handle it better."

Henderson often remembers her mom when she takes to the piano, now thankful her mother insisted she learn to read music at a young age.

"I've just been playing all my life," she said. "And I'll play until my fingers won't work anymore."

Note: The story was changed to correct the name of the organization donating the piano. The story first incorrectly listed the Brainerd American Legion Auxiliary. The donation came from Essentia Health St. Joseph’s Medical Center Auxiliary.