Keerthana Srinivasan is a Tacy alumna who returned to us during COVID when she was at the University of Maryland. She pioneered the Foundation’s Private YouTube Playlist to give our student volunteers a vehicle to continue their relationships with the seniors. In lockdown, the students could go nowhere, and they really missed playing and visiting on weekends with the seniors. The playlist became the means to continue their relationships and visits from a place of safety for both parties. It became important to keep up the morale of the seniors as well as the children, so we continued to send music and make cards with messages from the kids; we sent pages of jokes, seasonal artwork and other things that would interest seniors, such as coloring books and crossword puzzles. The seniors invited us back first when the doors opened again. Keerthana's idea to create a private playlist became the channel for 500 performances in 2020-2021. A second playlist is now being utilized for 2021-2022. And very importantly, her idea opened up a new world of opportunity to serve to hundreds of youth in our area.

As we were finalizing our May newsletter, we learned that Keerthana has been accepted to medical school at Drexler! We are so happy for this well-deserved opportunity. Below is her note and photo.
 

On Thursday, April 14th, seven teens (the maximum number allowed during Covid) played their beautiful music at National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical Research Center as part of the Live Music for Hospitals Projects. The printed program was designed by Riona Sheikh, a sophomore at Richard Montgomery High School. There were compositions by Rachmaninoff, Chopin, JS Bach, and Beethoven.


The lunch tables were full of people waiting for treatment, doctors and research technicians taking a lunch break, and caregivers of patients.

After the program finished, a tall gentleman in a white coat wandered from the snack bar over toward the piano. This doctor seemed to have a very deep interest in the music. As the students gathered around him, he asked if the 9' instrument met with their approval. As he spoke, the teens learned that Dr. Linehan and his wife, also a doctor, donated the fine instrument to the hospital, knowing that music has an important place in healing people and in uplifting them through their recovery.

Dr. Linehan, a pioneer in the study of the genetic basis of kidney cancer and Chief of the Urologic Oncology Branch in the Center for Cancer Research, described how the 9’ grand piano was selected and donated to the Clinical Research Center. Speaking personably to the aspiring teen musicians, he told the story of a renowned pianist who lost the use of his right hand at the height of his career. Dr. Linehan knew the pianist Leon Fleisher, who for 30 years searched all over the world for a cure from focal dystonia, the condition that destroyed the use of his right hand. Finally, in 1995, after Mr. Fleisher was treated with a new treatment at NIH, the use of his right hand was restored. His subsequent album, Two Hands, became a best seller.

Dr. Linehan showed portraits of Presidents William Clinton, George Bush, and Barack Obama and described their visits to NIH, and particularly to his lab. Humbly and kindly, he encouraged the young musicians to persevere, telling them of the 28 years of trial and error to find a cure for just one kind of cancer.

The Events Manager, Deborah Accame, expressed warmth and gratitude to all of the musicians. She told them that a patient sitting in the audience was about to her to learn if her cancer was in remission or not. The music brought her peace and comfort, and she was so thankful for this moment.

On Saturday, April 9th, Tacy Foundation volunteers and their parents came to Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring to lift the hearts and spirits of patients, staff, and visitors as they entered and left the hospital. It was our hope and intention that the music would fill all 527 beds in the hospital. 
 
We hand-delivered 550 handmade cards to the Volunteer Office. Their colorful designs and encouraging words were intended to inspire hope.

On April 10, during spring break, Tacy volunteers played for seniors at Hunters Woods, a senior assisted-living facility in Reston, VA. Everyone played so well, and the seniors had lots of great things to say about the performers. Another concert is scheduled for May 14th. -- Matthew Kim (Chief Intern)

I am a 7^th grader at Longfellow MS and an accomplished junior pianist who has won many awards in regional and international competitions. I’ve been studying piano since I was six years old, and my teacher is Ms. Lisa Emenheiser Sarratt. I love playing the instrument because of the wide range of genres and the vast amount of works written for it. I enjoy exploring different piano composers from different periods of music. My favorite composers are Chopin, Beethoven, and Debussy. I have developed a bond with this intricate instrument and find myself constantly looking forward to diving into the next repertoire, whether it be a whimsical and light prelude, or a deep and charismatic ballade. 


I recently joined the Tacy Foundation and have performed twice already at assisted-living communities on behalf of the foundation. I joined because I wanted to connect with people through my music. Music is so powerful: through music I am able to create joy and other emotions in folks that I’ve never met. I find that very gratifying. It is also a great way for me to give back to society.

I'm so glad to be a part of the Tacy Foundation.  -- Caroline Su
 

Hi! My name is Anaya Mayer, and I am a seventh grader at Cabin John MS. I received the President's Volunteer Service Award for my service of 60.7 SSL Hours in one calendar year with the Tacy Foundation. The task was to create packets of puzzles for the elderly and, on the cover of these packets, put inspirational quotes. This is important because the pandemic had isolated everyone in the entire world, and the seniors took the biggest impact. By creating these custom packets, I provided activities for them to do! Sometimes, seniors feel forgotten and lonely, and the packets that are sent to them are a reminder that people like me care about them. When I received the award, I was very happy and proud of myself that I did something good for this community. I am grateful to the Tacy Foundation for giving me an opportunity to contribute to this cause, and I am definitely going to continue completing SSL hours with them.


My name is Avin Mayer. I am a 6th grade student at Cabin John Middle School. I played piano songs for people in the hospital and made packets of tiny activities for the elderly. Music makes people happy so I thought that if you play a piano for people who are having a tough time, they could feel happiness. The packets were activities in case they ever felt bored or lonely. This project was for the Tacy Foundation, which helps raise the spirits of elders and others. Getting the award made me think that I contributed a lot to the Tacy Foundation’s mission and motivated me to do more.