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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.
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Director’s Corner:
Young volunteers began playing their music in the lobby of Holy Cross Hospital in Germantown, MD in February 2018. By March 2018, the opportunity had expanded to the Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring. The positive response of our young musicians has continued through the years (with a pause during COVID in 2020). Both hospitals were the first to request our return to live music in 2021.
Holy Cross Germantown patients, staff, and visitors hear children and teens play every Saturday at 3 p.m. The Holy Cross Silver Spring lobby is filled with coming, going, and waiting visitors and staff who enjoy the music twice a month. In both locations, the very old pianos had seen their last days.
In late March, the Tacy Foundation Board voted unanimously to donate a brand new digital piano to each hospital. The two beautiful Kawai pianos, ordered by Schaeffer’s Pianos (Rockville), were delivered March 27.
On March 28, Richard Pedersen, President of Tacy Foundation, greeted the volunteers as they played the new Kawai piano at Germantown. They delighted in such a fine instrument. And I had the great privilege of greeting the musicians at Silver Spring!
Sarah Walker, Holy Cross Volunteer Director, has encouraged our programs with her full support since we began. Mr. Eric Miller, President of the Holy Cross Foundation has advocated for our continued efforts at both Germantown and Silver Spring. He has met with the students and thanked them for their contribution to patients and staff at both hospitals. (See his kind note below.)
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Thank you, everyone, for your support each week, month, and year as we learn how and why our efforts matter.
Charlotte Tacy Holliday, Founder & Executive Director
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Student volunteers at Holy Cross Hospital in Germantown surprised Mrs. Holliday with a cake for her birthday on April 4.
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L. to R.: Azucena, Victoria, Vianca Regachuelo, the brother of a volunteer, Mathew Gavrylyuk, Vishagan Aranganathan, Ms. Holliday, Sainandika, Vaishnavi Samineni, and Rick Lar.
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L. to R.: Ms. Holliday, Vishagan, Vishagan’s father, Mathew Gavrylyuk, and the parent of a volunteer.
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Challenging but Rewarding
Vishagan Aranganathan
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The Tacy Foundation initiated its wonderful program to use music as a way to provide relief for hospital staff and help heal those dealing with immense pain. Every Saturday at Holy Cross Hospital, we host a one-hour session where we manage a rotating group of student volunteers so that the music never stops flowing through the halls. While the goal is to create a peaceful atmosphere for the nurses and doctors, keeping the operation running smoothly behind the scenes can be a challenge.
This year, we hit a bit of a bumpy note when many of our senior performers, who were the backbone of our program, graduated or moved on to other commitments. Since we relied on these experienced students to lead the way, their absence left a significant gap in our Saturday schedule. It was a stressful situation because I knew how much the hospital staff looked forward to those weekly melodies to help them get through their demanding shifts. To keep the program from falling silent, I had to step up and find a way to bring in new volunteers to keep the tradition alive.
One of the most involved parts of a Chief Intern’s responsibilities is managing the logistics of the musical performances. Chief Interns switch every week in their own separate rotation, so if someone cannot make their assigned Saturday, finding a replacement requires a lot of constant messaging and coordination. In my case, there were several times when a substitute could not be found, and I would simply step in to coordinate for a second week in a row in order to ensure that everything stayed on track. Fortunately, I was not alone in this effort. With the support of my dad, other dedicated parents, and our student volunteers, we turned the transition into a successful team effort. I focused on recruiting and training new peers for Chief Intern positions, and we were soon back to a steady rhythm with classes happening every single week. Through such experiences, I realized that leadership is a lot like playing in an ensemble, because it only works when everyone stays in sync.
Amidst these logistical hurdles, there were moments of pure grace that reminded us why this work matters. During one of our Saturday sessions, an army veteran visiting the hospital surprised us all by asking to play. Watching him sit at the piano and share his own music added a beautiful layer to our rotation, and it was a joy to see the hospital staff pause for a moment to appreciate the unexpected performance. It was a lighthearted reminder that music creates a community even in the most high-pressure environments.
This experience has provided a wonderful leadership opportunity that taught me a lot about accountability and the importance of a strong support system. I have learned that being a leader means staying positive and taking responsibility, even when the task becomes difficult. Seeing a nurse smile or hear a staff member explain how our music made their difficult shift a little easier makes all the work worthwhile. I am incredibly proud of how our group of parents and students came together to overcome these difficulties. Thanks to the Foundation’s vision and our team’s hard work, the music at Holy Cross is more vibrant than ever.
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This army veteran, visiting the hospital, surprised us by sitting down at the piano to share his own music with our community.
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Above: Every Saturday at Holy Cross Hospital, we coordinate a rotation of performers to ensure that the music never stops flowing through the lobby.
Right: A student performer brings holiday cheer to the hospital with her harp.
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Staff Appreciation
Jenny Kim
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I have the privilege of serving as one of the adult site supervisors at Brightview Fair Oaks. With a current graduating senior, I can’t help but reflect on the relationships and experiences over the years. The success of our program at Brightview Fair Oaks relies on the partnership with the facility’s activity coordinator, Susie Twedt. Every month, Ms. Susie coordinates and reminds residents across both Memory Care and Assisted Living, ensuring that our performers have a full, engaged audience.
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Jenny Kim, Susie Twedt, and Charlotte Holliday
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Beyond logistics, Ms. Susie consistently goes out of her way to make our volunteers feel appreciated, from preparing holiday treat bags to her recent celebration of Volunteer Appreciation Month. Ms. Holliday even received a treat bag during her April visit. The commitment of staff like Ms. Susie is the key to ensuring that our Tacy students and adult volunteers have a positive and mutually rewarding experience at the facility. Thank you, Ms. Susie!!
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A Young Musical Ambassador
Charlotte Holliday
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Davanee Li has remained a brilliant and loyal Tacy volunteer and Chief Intern for many years. On Friday evening, April 10, I attended her program in Washington. She performed a demanding program with grace, beauty, and imagination.
Davanee’s poetry, techincal pyrotechnics, creativity, and musical poetry have been enjoyed at senior facilities in Northern Virginia for years. Always kind to and thoughtful of other youth and seniors, and gifted in sharing the power of music, Davanee remains a powerful ambassador of music’s restorative powers.
Congratulations to her, to her teacher, and to her parents! As she performed her senior recital program, memories of her presnece from the assisted-living seniors flooded my mind with deepest appreciation for her legacy among us. Tacy Foundation staff, as well as the many volunteers who have joined her each month for Live Music for Seniors, will remember her gift and her powerful message of hope and healing.
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My Amazing Dad
Quynh-Mi Hoang (a student of Ms. Holliday)
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On April 1, 2026, Artemis II became the first mission to take a crew of astronauts up to the moon since 1972, 54 years ago. The world watched in awe as the craft traveled 248,655 miles, the farthest a human has ever been from Earth, before splashing down successfully in San Diego. The mission lasted nine days, one hour, three minutes and 35 seconds. For the first time, a human would directly lay eyes on the dark side of the moon, breaking records like never before.
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Meanwhile, my family and I waited in awe to see my dad’s work. The mission was guided by a very important aspect — communication.
A key part of this mission was the astronauts’ ability to communicate with bases back home on Earth. My dad, Tien Hoang, is a telecommunications engineer who supported the Artemis II mission, after previously working on refueling robots in space. He was the chief engineer in the Artemis II Launch Communications Segment, leading the design and development of the communications systems. Along with a team, he worked on the transitions between the operations of the communications systems in preparation for the launch. This included transitioning from the launch stage, ascent, DSN (Deep Space Network), planning for the communication gaps, and other aspects of the mission.
He was responsible for three ground antenna networks for the mission the Kennedy Uplink Station, Ponce de León, and the Bermuda Downlink Antenna. His job included cooperating with other teams throughout the project to manage the ground antenna networks, forcing him to consider requirements, risks, and costs, and to keep track of the schedule. My father made additional key contributions to the project, making major decisions, giving guidance to others on changes to the programs, and ensuring that the project requirements were met through efficient coordination and management.
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His work on this project took him away from home for days at a time. Every single time, the house would feel so much emptier without him, and the mornings so much quieter, especially since he took me to school every day. Every night, my family would call him, make sure he was taking care of himself, and joke with him before bed. But every single time he left, we couldn’t have felt prouder.
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My dad has gone through thick and thin, growing up in the aftermath of the Vietnam War, then immigrating to America at the age of 21 before getting his degree at the University of Drexel and meeting my mom. Throughout all the events in his life, he has been a great father, raising and caring for three children, my two brothers and me. Regardless of all the hardships, my dad would continue to look forward, and now he’s had this amazing chance to contribute to history. I write this because I’m so incredibly proud of my father and all of his achievements, and I know he will continue to do more for our country and for the advancement of humanity.
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Performances at Hunters Woods
Charlotte Holliday
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The first performances at Hunters Woods at Trails Edge began on November 3, 2019. Music for seniors at this facility began before the building was completed, and the residents were not yet completely moved in. The story of this very special place has many memorable moments for teens who came on Saturday or Sunday afternoons to play their music for seniors for the past seven years.
That the flow of young musicians has continued speaks highly to the staff there, the charming seniors, and the sincere and talented youth who navigated in a world of school, sports, music competitions, and family life.
Enjoy the photos below of the current volunteers. We send the seniors into the college world with gratitude and remain grateful for those who remain another year or more among us. And keep on keeping on. Congratulations, volunteers!
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From L. to R.: Maggie He, Joshua Gwon, Gregory Peng, and Jessica Chen.
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Joshua Gwon plays the violin.
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Maggie He performs a piano solo at Hunters Woods at Trails Edge, a senior living facility in Reston, Va.
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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
Michael Tacy and Zoe Bell, Graphic Editors
Michael Favin, Chief 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!
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