September 2020 Newsletter

Inspiring Hope In September 2020

Thank you to these teens who have served the Foundation’s charitable music performance, educational mentoring programs, and community bridge-building through their teen years. 

              Watch for their testimonials in the October Newsletter! 

Matthew Rothman
Apurva Choudhary
Pranav Hegde
Jason Daniels
Candace Moore
 

During the past five months, as the entire planet reeled with the effects of COVID-19, the youth here in the Nation’s Capital Area have continued to rally energetically from their homes.  They have continued to beam hope through music, story, and art.  Some of their Quarantine projects are these:
 

  • Art Work for seniors’ facilities.  See the work of Denny Tsitsiwu, Joseph Matthew, and Michelle Huang by clicking on this link:
 
           https://photos.app.goo.gl/rjPeZsQ5j6MjYPzP8
 
(Collated by Alison Boynton, Program Manager, Amber Briscoe, Chief Intern for Cards Projects for COVID First Responders and Patients.  Anika Seth, Teen Communications Chief Intern, assembled over 100 pieces for you to admire and appreciate the tremendous efforts of the youth in the Nation’s Capital Area. These works of art are the messages of hope to Activities Directors of Senior facilities from the children and teens.  They streamed in all summer long and will continue through COVID.
  • Tacy Foundation Private Playlist on YouTube goes to seniors’ facilities and to hospitals.  OVER 200 Songs are now being played on this list! Thanks to Keerthana Srinivasan, College Intern, Anika Seth and Shairee Arora, Teen Interns for working all summer to upload all submissions for this amazing playlist.
NIH Patient Library features some of these performances each Sunday morning in the hospital. Children’s National Hospital in DC is streaming music and stories from its Seacrest TV Studio into the patients’ rooms.  Because special permission to use certain songs has been donated for charitable purposes of the Foundation, we are unable to share publicly the playlistAlumnus Grace Wang and Chris Tong organized and participated in Live Music on WebEx for Loudoun County Adult Day Care seniors.  This Virtual Performance featured another Alumnus Bryan Eng whose Debut Album has been released in Chicago. Grace has returned to Stanford to continue her studies in neurology and in music.  The participants played from Maryland, Texas, and Chicago.  This first Live Music on WebEx has sparked a new series for that center.  By-weekly programs will continue under Chief intern Hana Wang’s, Melissa Wu’s, Sophia and Jacqui Go’s leadership until COVID ends and all children/teens return to the many Live Music events each month.  Amy Tsou is organizing a Live Virtual video concert for Heritage Village in Gainesville, VA.
 
A fascinating new program this summer, READING EXPRESS, has captured the imagination and creativity of many volunteers.  Claudia Scott, Special Ed teacher on the Navajo Nation Unified School District initialized this program for the Foundation and presented live events at public libraries on the Reservation for years.  She brought the events to Maryland to Montgomery County Public Libraries and Polar Express to Gaithersburg ES and to HOC Tanglewood Apartments.  Ms. Scott offered the idea in May to upload stories on YouTube (public domain and original stories only). She provided a list of stories and books that are in public domain.  Jessica Hoang of Boyds, MD, was the first volunteer who launched her own book.  She created, illustrated, and narrated an amazing story to launch the Reading Express Virtual Library in May.  Since that time, others have lent their talents to reading stories and books in public domain.  In August, Denny Tsitsiwu, composed a story, created a video with himself as narrator, actor, and musician.  All stories and offerings are in public domain or are donated by the creators of the stories.  Pratyusha Mandal, Chief Intern of Reading Express Virtual Library, has prepared and uploaded each submission all summer long   Her encouragement and guidance have empowered our kids to create all sorts of possibilites for hospitals and seniors.  Below is the link to this Private Playlist that is donated to seniors and to hospitals:
 
Here is the link to Reading Express Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLL7QdivcJmnis4fDF3dC-ykyHO8hyPTzB
 
Please know that for every activity, there is much dedication involved:
Time, imagination, creativity, music and craft resources, parental involvement and support, travel to pickup and drop-off, vendors’ immediate turn around with requests for CDs, USBs, and shipment, and teen dedication to supervise the safe delivery of every card, CD, USB.
 
Everyone is a volunteer!  Thank you to:
 
  • Teen staff who coordinate and speak at Phone Conference Call Orientations, 
  • College and high school staff who receive and upload hundreds of videos of music to the YouTube Live Music Playlist,
  • High school staff who receive, guide, upload videos of children’s books to a Playlist for Reading Express on YouTube, 
  • Tacy Foundation Programs Manager Alison Boynton who distributes each email message, drawing, crossword puzzle, testimonial to seniors, & who arranges  Virtual Live Music,  
  • Adult Staff (six) who supervise and Host Zoom Meetings for Piano & Guitar Pals® weekly Trainings,
  • Teen Communications Chief Intern, Anika Seth, who manages communication for FaceBook, the Newsletter, and all Orientations (twice weekly through summer as demand rose in June, July, and August), 
  • Editor, Matthew Scott, who manages the Newsletter layout and finishing touches each month,
  • Teen Newsletter editor, Matthew Rothman, assistant to Anika Seth and Adult Chief Designer/Editor Matthew Scott,
  • Staff Data Manager, Tacy Foundation Volunteer, Jenny Utz, who enters every minute & hour earned each semester for Tacy Foundation records and for school systems that require Student Service Learning Credit for graduation.  Ms. Utz has continued her impeccable record-keeping for twelve years since the Foundation’s origin.
  • The Board of Directors.  All professionals, the Board members steer the course and provide enthusiasm, guidance, and vision for the journey through COVID and beyond.
 
Thank you for reading the Newsletters and for congratulating High School Seniors when you hear them on the phone at Orientation or see them for pickups or dropoffs.
 
Your donations are very much appreciated for the next wave of purchases of USBs, recording studio fees, program printing, and shipment.  

Kindly send your donation to:

The Tacy Foundation 

PO Box 2334

Germantown, MD 20875    

Or:  Go to www.tacyfoundation.org and make your payment on PayPal from the web site.

  Marielou Holmes, Artist

For anyone donating $25.00 or more, we will send to your address, upon request, a Tacy Foundation CD.  First come, first served.  

(Please send us your USPS mailing address when you request a CD.)

 

Charlotte Holliday, Executive Director

Matthew D. Scott, Chief Editor/Designer

Anika Seth, Teen Editor

Matthew Rothman, Teen Edito

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