Liz Stookey Sunde carries on the cause of love and making us all better human beings through Music to Life. As the daughter of Noel Paul Stookey of the 1960s folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary, she knows firsthand the power of music to change our souls.

Noel Paul Stookey wrote perhaps the most oft-quoted song lyric at weddings: “Whenever two or more of you are gathered in His name, there is Love.” Our world regularly feels unsettled, in need of love — and gifted troubadours like Noel create songs that unite us. Stookey’s career with Peter, Paul and Mary promoted peace and kindness, and now he has taken this vision for a better world one step further.

In collaboration with a diverse coalition of artists, businesses and nonprofit allies, Noel and his daughter have founded Music to Life, a national nonprofit that offers musicians the training, resources and mentorship they need to become social entrepreneurs in their communities.

Communities face numerous health, education and human rights crises. Music is a great healer, and musicians can be activated to build bridges to positive change. Sunde and her team are ushering in a new kind of troubadour, building community partnerships and programs that address issues of economic, environmental and racial justice.

“We’ve all benefited from music’s restorative power,” Sunde says, “whether at a festival, in a concert hall or even as part of a musical ensemble. We want to empower the music-makers and help them build music-driven programs that revitalize their communities.”

Musicians, from rap artists to classically trained violinists, use their art to address a need in close collaboration with a community-based organization. Their stories are inspirational: a country artist with kids who struggled with substance misuse now facilitates musical healing for parents and caregivers at a local opioid clinic; an Indigenous rap poet who lost friends to suicide now tours nationally and conducts self-esteem workshops at juvenile detention facilities; and a bilingual performer from Latin America engages new American domestic workers in productions that help them adjust to their new home and connect with each other.

“At no time during the cross-cultural evolution of this planet has music ever had a more important role,” notes Stookey. “In an era of mistrust and confusing social signals, these musicians touch the people of our communities, bringing clarity and hope to a wounded world. I’m honored to play a small role in their journey and the work of my daughter.”

Music not only heals our souls and connects us as human beings; it awakens the divine within us, the yearning to bring peace to the world one relationship at a time. When we are moved by the tones that transcend language, we make room in our lives to love more. We find time to gather and share. We move to a better place and find ourselves believing “in something that we’ve never seen before.”

The Foundation for a Better Life promotes positive values to live by and pass along to others. Go to PassItOn.com.