The International Institute of Wisconsin (IIW) will host a benefit concert on Sunday, September 18 to raise funds for its Refugee Resettlement Program. The event will be held at 2 p.m. and again at 6 p.m. It will include a reception, an arts & crafts installation and a silent auction held prior to the concert (which will be held at 3 p.m. and repeated at 7 p.m.)

William Neil and Tom Gullion of Project Fourth Stream – known for their intrepid fusing of jazz improvisation and classical composition – will headline. The guest artist will be Issam Rafea, a composer and virtuoso with the oud: pear-shaped cousin of the lute and ancestor of the modern guitar. Also included will be a performance by Saadi Tawfeeq al Baghdadi, a traditional Iraqi musician, who will play the oud and the ney: a flute made of reed.

IIW is dedicated to the promotion of international cooperation, understanding and multicultural perspectives. For more than seven decades IIW has assisted with the resettlement of refugee individuals and families fleeing violence or persecution in their homelands; its goal being to welcome these newcomers into our society and help them to integrate. Last year IIW lit the way for 290 refugees; 290 men, women and children who fled the darkness of turmoil in Burma, Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia and Sudan. With the help of fundraisers, such as this benefit concert, IIW will continue striving forward on its humanitarian mission; will continue brandishing a torch in the dark.

The cost of the New Beginnings benefit concert is $30 per person, or $25 for those under age 25 with a valid Student ID.