To our KO community:
We are outraged and we mourn with our community for the death of George Floyd and the Black men and women who have been subjected to systemic violence and injustice, including Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, David McAtee, and Alton Sterling, among so many others.
We firmly support the Black lives matter movement against violence and systemic racism, and we are here to intentionally listen, learn, grow, and take action.
As a board and staff, we are taking time to reflect not only on our own thoughts, behaviors, and actions but also on how we can collectively, as an organization, do better by our Black community members whom we so dearly love and support.
Please know that we are here for all of our KO students and families.
In the coming weeks, we will have deep conversations among both staff and board to ensure we are interrogating our own biases and prejudices. We will also discuss how we can move forward together toward a more inclusive and equitable future for our community.
Impacting children’s lives through music is at the core of Kids’ Orchestra’s mission and we are committed to ensuring that all of our students continue to feel safe, loved, and able to express their full selves in our afterschool program.
As we continue a lifelong process of learning and unlearning together, here are some helpful resources on having conversations about recent events with your family and children:
We hear you. We see you. And we’re here for you.
In service & solidarity,
Branden Barker, Jessica Trepagnier, Lauren A. Fowler, Christina Davis, Katie Schellack, Dr. Trang Huynh, Jeffrey W. Peters
Kids’ Orchestra Board of Directors
Jody Hanet, Sam Trevathan, Brian Gallion, Melissa Parmelee, Erika Ladd, Kristina Pepelko, Larry Heard, and Wilbert Gilley
Kids’ Orchestra Administrative Staff
