May 2024

The Tacy Foundation empowers children and teens to share hope and joy with hospital patients, military veterans, senior citizens, and disadvantaged youth through performances, music recording projects, and music mentoring programs.

A Thank you message for each Graduating Senior!

May 2024

Dear Graduating Seniors,

May you be blessed with the energizing and

Restorative power of music throughout your life.

Thank you for your leadership among us,

And for your music and art.

Come back and visit us whenever you wish.

Continue sharing your gifts with courage and strength

As you move on to college!

We send our deepest appreciation to you.

Congratulations!

Charlotte Holliday, Founder and Executive Director

Ananya Akula

Jayahthi Ankem

Maximilian Belyantsev

Evan Bian

Anna Bona-pace

Melissa Brown

Winnie Chen

Lyle Erickson

Joanne Fan

Khoa Hoang

Zachary Jaffe

Grace Liang

Hanqing Liu

Michelle Liu

James Madamba

Olivia McMahon

Larson Ozbun

Nidhi Parekh

William Parson

Aidan Haiping Paul

Niko Paulson

Claire Peng

Christopher Pishvaian

Khoi Phuong

Riona Sheikh

Angela Shen

Rutajit Shetty

Lianor Sweda

Mira Wedam

Alice Yacubovich

Christopher Yeung

Triston Yu

Farhan Zaman

Through the years, The Tacy Foundation has been so very blessed by students with talent in the arts, parents who go to the ends of the earth to see that their children learn philanthropy, and adults who volunteer in managerial positions, such as Program Manager, SSL Manager, Site Supervisor for Seniors, Site Supervisor for Hospitals, and Site Supervisor for each Piano Pals Program in the four schools and Housing Opportunities Commission (“HOC”) Apartment complexes.

As seasons come and go, those who have served for short or long tenures eventually need to move on to other areas of service.

We would appreciate hearing from adults who possess skills that could support the work we are doing here in the Nation’s Capital Area. Let us know if you might be interested in volunteer positions with The Tacy Foundation’s programs, especially in (1) technology and record-keeping for SSL hours for various public and private schools in Montgomery and surrounding counties; (2) scheduling and managing the live music programs for seniors; (3) scheduling and overseeing signups and coverage of live music for hospitals; or (4) supervising the Piano Pals Program in a particular school or HOC apartment facility.

Anyone looking for a way to give back to the community is invited to serve…alums, parents of active volunteers, and adults, including senior adults. We will be happy to benefit from your leadership and technical skills behind the scenes or remotely, if that is the most convenient scenario for you. It is very likely that we will need:

• Two Program Managers for Live Music for Seniors Facilities going forward, one manager for Maryland and one manager for Northern Virginia.  

• A third Program Manager of Live Music for Hospitals to schedule and communicate with volunteers for the growing requests from hospitals for live music for visitors, staff, and patients.  

• Multiple managers for SSL record-keeping and official documentation for each youth volunteer.  

Write to:

Charlotte Holliday at thetacyfoundation@gmail.com.  

Or call 301-916-1439. Kindly leave your name and phone number on the voicemail. (This is a land line.)

Or contact us via U.S. mail to:

The Tacy Foundation

PO Box 2334

Germantown, MD  20875

Happy Summer Everyone!

A Message from a Senior at Waltonwood Senior Living in Ashburn

Johns Hopkins Howard County General Hospital Welcomes Youth Music Performances

Man Chun Lee

Olivia McGraw is the Volunteer Director of Howard County General Hospital in Columbia, Maryland. A few months ago, I (Parent Supervisor Man Chun Lee) asked Ms. McGraw to authorize youth volunteers to perform their instrumental music for patients, visitors, and staff at this very busy hospital. Within a short time, the invitation was accepted, and then came the proper legal requirements for youth to come in as volunteers and play in the front lobby.

Young musicians and their parents are the catalysts in the growth and development of all Live Music programs associated with the Tacy Foundation. Most consider it a privilege to play before audiences in hospitals and senior residences.

My family searched for opportunities for our daughter Claire to play cello and piano for charitable purposes. Our first experience required a long drive from Elkridge in Howard County to Holy Cross in Silver Spring. In subsequent months we drove to senior facilities in Montgomery County and then to Hopkins Sibley Memorial in Washington, DC. Claire played at the NIH Clinical Research Center as well. She has continued regular participation on Saturdays and/or Sundays.

A high school student in Howard County, Claire is very busy with her solo work on piano and cello, as well as in youth orchestras and school music programs. We (Claire’s parents) have enthusiastically encouraged and facilitated our daughter’s interests in community service. And now her music friends in Howard County are providing the sounds of hope when they perform in this beautiful hospital that serves Columbia and all surrounding areas.

I wrote the following note to the hospital coordinator after the event in May:

The group had another successful outing on Saturday. We had four performers, and everyone played multiple pieces. Quite a few passersby stopped and listened. The front desk staff complimented the group and said that the music helped them with the stress of the day.

Thank you, Ms. McGraw, for helping out. We look forward to our next performance in two weeks.

Thank you,

Man Chun Lee

From left to right: Angela Long, Claire Lee, Alyssa Kim, Gabriel Lazaga-Lucila

Accomplished Composers

Michael Tacy

Many students from the Tacy Foundation and across the state of Maryland entered their original music into the Young Composer’s Project Competition hosted by the Maryland Music Educators Association (MMEA). We had more participation from our students than ever before, and I want to thank and congratulate every one of them! Their names are listed below. I am delighted to share with the friends of the Tacy Foundation that two of our Composers from Composer’s Circle advanced to the Young Composer’s Project Showcase. Those Young Composers were our very own Roy Fischman and Lumina Zhang.

These students work so hard on their music, so it is wonderful to see their efforts being recognized and appreciated. Roy and Lumina’s pieces were featured in the MMEA’s master classes as shining examples of well-written music. I couldn’t be prouder of these two! Please enjoy listening to the two pieces via the links below.

Participants:

Anagha Namboodiri

Evelyn Trackman

Melody Chen

David Wang

Sean Wang

Lumina Zhang

Roy Fischman

Pieces featured in Showcase:

Lumina Zhang – Sonata Movement 2:

Roy Fischman – Zone C:

The Tacy Foundation

Educational Mission: Foster youth development through music, story and mentoring

Philanthropic Mission: Empower youth to discover and use their gifts in service to others

Social Mission: Build community partnerships and create intergenerational connections

Whom We Serve

Seniors

Children

Teens

Service members

Veterans

Injured/sick

Economically disadvantaged

Individuals who want to serve

How We Serve (Programs)

Live music concerts

Reading Express®

Piano Pals®

Guitar Pals®

Composers’ Circle

Music USBs

Musical equipment

COVID projects through video, email, cards, puzzles for outreach to the community

Charlotte Holliday, Founder and Executive Director

Matthew D. Scott and Michael Tacy, Graphic Editors

Michael Favin, Chief Editor

Zoe Bell, Teen Editor

Max Belyanstev, Teen Editor

Donations are appreciated.  All adult and teen staff are volunteers.  No salaries or benefits. Every dollar you donate goes to supplies for all projects offered to the community. 

Thank you!