My dad was deployed after 9/11. It was scary & hard- having JUST moved to the USA after being born & raised in Japan as a multilingual military family (also twice-exceptional). My Choir teacher was an extra parent & is still in my life after 23 years. Thanks to him I have 2X the family, love, & support. He truly saved my life & empowered me. THIS is who he inspired me to be for my students. Every kid deserves & benefits from additional trusted adults to love them through the challenges of life.

So many! I've a journal FULL of funny moments my kids & I share, but specifically: Getting a nonverbal student to speak in musical sentences. I also love teaching about animals & had my parrots in class. They started dancing to our music, so the kids danced with them! Later, my fiancé proposed & the WHOLE student body showed up to be with us. I was SHOOK. Sharing that milestone with my kids was the pinnacle of joy! They cried even more than I did! My Choir is going to sing at our wedding. <3

I COULD use it for medical bills from Lupus & MS, but INSTEAD I plan to use it to aid our students who can’t afford an instrument, performance/competition costs, & to provide much-needed materials for the Choir dept to grow & thrive (I grew it from 7 kids & risking deletion to over 120!) because music education is for everyone! Some could go to the educational bird rescue/rehab I include my students in, & maybe a very tiny bit could go towards our wedding because MR. T & I ARE GETTING MARRIED!