Cards for Uvalde
By Karina Willis-Lara

Communicating through Music and Beyond
By Anna Bray

My Achievements at Tacy Foundation
By Katie Wang
 

Sean (my brother) and I get a lot of volunteering experience at Tacy Foundation. As a result, Ms. Holliday suggested that Sean could do a summer program. My brother agreed to it and let me join in. So, we have a “Sean and Katie’s Musical Hour” every Monday for the rest of the summer. Every time we finish the concert, I notice that the seniors always look very happy, pleased, and hopeful. This makes me feel extremely good. I think Sean feels the same way.

Whenever I finish playing at any concert, I notice how the audiences applaud and smile. The smiles on their faces seem to be contagious. I like to make the audience smile because it makes me smile too. I think that anyone would enjoy making others happy. As a result, I encourage those who read this article to continue volunteering and try their best to spread hope and joy.

I like to spread peace, happiness, hope, kindness, love, and warmth, so I will also continue to volunteer.

Tacy Foundation’s goal is to spread hope. I also have a goal, too. In fact, three goals. These include:

Thank you, Tacy Foundation. Thank you, Ms. Holliday.

My Summer Internship Experience
By Sean Wang
 

This summer is different and meaningful for me – not because I graduated from middle school, but because I am doing a summer internship! When Mrs. Holliday told me about this opportunity and asked me if I was interested, I was very excited about this “job.” With tremendous help from Mrs. Holliday and Ms. Adams, the coordinator of the Brighton Gardens of Friendship Heights, I was fortunate to get accepted for this summer internship. Even more luckily, my sister Katie agreed to be my partner!
 
After several days of discussion with my sister, we came up with an idea for “Sean and Katie’s Musical Hour,” which we thought the seniors would enjoy. Our plan was to do a weekly one-hour program. Each week we would feature a composer and play a few of the composer’s pieces along with some interesting stories. After that we would add some other pieces that we love and some that I composed. Finally, we would conclude with some easy-listening, light music. We wished to share some music that we love with the seniors and let them feel that we’re all connected through love and hope. Thus, our summer program was born!
 
Our debut was on July 4^th, 2022, a day that is worth all celebration! On the debut day, I felt quite nervous in the beginning, because I was not sure if the elderly would enjoy the program. My anxiety was all gone after I played the first piece and got a round of applause and cheers from the elderly. It was so rewarding that instantly I knew we had connected through the power of music. My sister also received lots of acclamation and encouragement. After the program, several seniors came over to us and told us how much they enjoyed our program and how grateful they were for what we did for them.  They said that they looked forward to our next show and would refer our program to their families and friends. I was so moved and proud that my sister and I were able to do something for the seniors that they enjoyed.
 
So far, the “Sean and Katie’s Musical Hour” has been a success, and my sister and I have become celebrities (sort of) in Brighton Gardens of Friendship Heights! Furthermore, we made several elderly friends there. They still look forward to our performances every Monday! This is a huge encouragement and motivation to us. I really appreciate this opportunity, and thank you, Mrs. Holliday and Ms. Adams, for making all these come true!

As most of the senior homes opened their doors in the past year, I was finally able to go and perform for many of them after a long wait. It is a truly rewarding experience, being able to meet seniors in-person and share my love for music with them. Many of them have bright smiles on their faces and really enjoy hearing us play!
 
I was gratified to see how eager the seniors were to hear us play. They would all be waiting around the piano for us, which I found very touching. After I performed, the seniors would always say such kind words about my performance. I remember when a daughter of one of the seniors came up to me and said that my playing made her want to learn piano again. I felt really proud when she said that. 

 

I am a middle schooler in Montgomery County who recently became affiliated with the Tacy Foundation. After going through an orientation, I was able to sign up for some volunteering opportunities offered by this organization. For example, I was able to take part in a live performance at the Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring, where I played the piano. There were other youth participants, and all of us took turns playing different pieces of music. Most of these were solo performances on the piano, with one duet on clarinet and piano.

It was amazing to be able to play music and spread happiness into the lives of patients, caretakers, and visitors at the hospital. It felt gratifying to use my passion for music to give back to others and make a difference. Also, this wonderful opportunity for community service helped me earn Student Service Learning (SSL) hours. In the future I wish to continue to participate in more of these musical performances and live events led by the foundation.

My name is Triston Yu, and I will be a rising Junior (11th grader) at Langley High School. I have been playing the piano since I was five, and I also play clarinet for my school ensemble. I came to Tacy because of my passion for music and my desire to share it with my community. In this, my first summer with Tacy, I want to put my passion to good use through continued volunteering at the various Tacy locations as well as regularly going to the Tall Oaks to visit seniors. Among the things I look forward to doing there are bringing music through piano and possibly clarinet repertoire, playing board games, and interacting and conversing with the seniors. Although this is my first time, I really hope to make this a worthwhile experience both for the seniors and for me to grow as a person as well.

I am so glad I had the opportunity to lead the video library playlists project! I was able to experience the talent of many young students who were eager to share their music with everyone. When the initiative started during the brink of the COVID-19 pandemic, we were worried about how it could reach a larger audience and supplement the live performances in different venues. Now, after two years of this project activity, I am thrilled to see that students are willing to submit their videos and participate! We have over 600 videos, combining all the playlists in the video library. The 45-minute QR cubes will take this to a new level. 
 
I learned a lot while leading this project. I hope to use the skills I have cultivated while embarking on a new journey this fall as a first-year medical student at Drexel University. Ms. Holliday mentioned that many students are interested in applying to medical school, and I would be happy to share my experience and help in any way! Please feel free to reach out with any questions to my email: keerthu.srini@gmail.com.