'We can't speak': Barenaked Ladies band member on connecting to daughter through music
As a long-time member of the iconic Canadian band, The Barenaked Ladies, Kevin Hearn has played before large audiences all around the world, but his most cherished performances are before an audience of one in a Toronto area group home. That’s where his daughter Havana lives. At nearly every visit, he plays her favourite song, Streams of Lemonade, a take-off on Streams of Whisky by the legendary Irish band The Pogues.
- Is the full episode above failing to play? You can watch it here
"Music in general to me - in regards to Havana - it's just the way we connect. We can't speak. We can't really have a conversation with words, but we can have a really deep and rich, rewarding conversation with music," said Hearn.
Havana, now 20, was born with a brain malformation called lissencephaly. She’s non-verbal, has limited mobility and endures seizures.
"When we first heard of her diagnosis, after spending a few weeks at the Hospital for Sick Kids, we were distraught," remembers Hearn. "And I went back to the hospital the next day and asked if I could speak to the nurses and the doctors. And I said, 'We don't know what to do. We're in a state of shock. And they said, ‘She's your daughter. All you have to do is love her.' And that was the best advice. And so my mission has always just been to give her the best life she possibly can have and facilitate her happiness."
A vital part of facilitating Havana’s happiness was finding somewhere for her to attend school when she was ready for kindergarten.
"We heard about Beverley School and made an appointment and went in there and it was like you could hear a choir singing. It was like, this is where we belong. This is a place for Havana," said Hearn.
For decades, Toronto’s Beverley School has been catering to young children with exceptionalities. All of the students from kindergarten to Grade 8 have developmental disabilities and many have both physical limitations and complicated medical conditions.
"We are here to provide opportunities and resources to every child,” said Beverley School principal Danjela Malobabic. “It's a place where we have technology readily available that other classes, other schools would not have because there is a level of understanding of what the students need."
By catering the entire learning environment to children with disabilities, the educators at Beverley believe they are able to tap into every student’s potential. Hearn feels it was the perfect place for Havana.
"It's a place where she grew up and she learned,” said Hearn. “Every day they would do activities and try to teach her about the world and nature and everything you could hope for your child. I'm ever grateful for the part that school played in our lives."
As a way of expressing that gratitude, Hearn performs in an annual fundraising concert for the families of Beverley School called Dream Serenade. Aside from Kevin, Dream Serenade has included a wide array of high profile artists including Gord Downie, Serena Ryder, Jim Cuddy from Blue Rodeo, Tom Cochrane, Feist and Matt Berninger from the National. The shows have raised more than $400,000 over the years. That money has gone towards everything from respite care for the parents of Beverley School students, to playground equipment.
"Dream Serenade is a wonderful thing,” said Hearn. ”I'm just honoured to be a part of it every year."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Prince William and Kate release photo of daughter Charlotte to mark ninth birthday
Prince William and his wife Kate released a picture of their daughter Charlotte to mark the princess's ninth birthday on Thursday.
This Canadian restaurant just lowered its prices. Here's how it did it
A Canadian restaurant lowered its prices this week, and though news of price tags dropping rather than climbing sounds unusual, the business strategy in this case is not, according to experts in the field.
Concerns about Plexiglas prompt inspections at some Loblaws locations in Ottawa
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall Plexiglas barriers.
'Oh, there you go': Tyler Black, son of veteran broadcaster Rod Black, has memorable Major League Baseball debut
Canadian baseball player Tyler Black made a major splash in his first-ever big league game for the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday night.
Facial reconstruction reveals what a 40-something Neanderthal woman may have looked like
Scientists studying a Neanderthal woman's remains have painstakingly pieced together her skull from 200 bone fragments to understand what she may have looked like.
Weight-loss drug Wegovy available in Canada starting May 6
The makers of Ozempic say their weight-loss drug Wegovy will be available to patients in Canada starting Monday.
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Goring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
Ontario man loses $1,500 applying for Nexus cards on social media
The trusted traveller program between Canada and the United States is extremely popular and almost two million Canadians have a Nexus card.
Companies letting customers opt out of Mother's Day ads
In an effort to balance the profitability of Mother's Day with the pain it causes some people, some brands are offering customers the choice to opt out of Mother's Day email advertising.
Local Spotlight
Here's how one of Sask.'s largest power plants was knocked out for 73 days, and what it took to fix it
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
Quebec police officer anonymously donates kidney, changes schoolteacher's life
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Canada's oldest hat store still going strong after 90 years
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Road closed in Oak Bay, B.C., so elephant seal can cross
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.
B.C. breweries take home awards at World Beer Cup
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Kitchener family says their 10-year-old needs life-saving drug that cost $600,000
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.
Haida Elder suing Catholic Church and priest, hopes for 'healing and reconciliation'
The lawyer for a residential school survivor leading a proposed class-action defamation lawsuit against the Catholic Church over residential schools says the court action is a last resort.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fergus, Ont. man feels nickel-and-dimed for $0.05 property tax bill
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.