Hello, I’m Sabrina Guo, founder of LILAC! Today I wanted to share with you my ThankYou & WeCare video submission: a music video to uplift the spirits of all those affected by the pandemic. I will be performing Halsey and Marshmello’s “Be Kind” on my electric violin. I particularly want to send my gratitude to all the school teachers, administrators and staff, and custodians who have been working tirelessly to keep students engaged and safe. Many have gone above and beyond the call of duty and made great personal sacrifices. I also want to honor many of you from across all walks of life who have retired without a proper send-off or the much-deserved recognition for your lifetimes of service. We want you to know that we appreciate all that you have done and You Will Never Be Forgotten! As former President Barack Obama put it, the audacity of Hope is not blind optimism...it’s about despite the adversities and shortcomings, we take the effort, the will, and community, to make things better. And that’s one of our guiding principles here at LILAC. Please Enjoy!

Today, LILAC is proud to announce our partnership with the National Art Honors Society of Syosset High School in conjunction with LILAC’s ThankYou & WeCare Initiative!⠀ ⠀ In 1978, the National Art Education Association began the NAHS program to inspire and recognize students who have shown an outstanding ability and interest in art. The program supports members in their efforts to attain the highest standards in art scholarship, character, and service and to bring art education to the attention of the school and community. Members are eligible for a variety of awards and grants, and are invited to attend the society’s annual convention. ⠀ ⠀ NAHS is committed to helping its members to achieve their highest potential in all forms of art, and to raise awareness of art education across the country.. We at LILAC understand that we need art now more than ever—it can provide comfort and joy to those in need, express the values we hold most dear, and bind us together as a community.⠀ ⠀ ⠀ We reached out to NAHS members to plan a collaboration between two hard-working and sincere organizations, and we are so grateful that twelve young artists agreed to feature their amazing works in our ThankYou & WeCare Initiative. Over the next several days, we’ll be individually showcasing the artwork from these students, and the video above (created by LILAC member Marla Hakim) is just a taste of the incredible pieces we’ve received. ⠀ ⠀ To All NAHS Members, thank you for participating in the NAHS/LILAC Collaborative! We are very excited to share your digital artwork, which will no doubt be appreciated by all the communities in Long Island/NYC and across the US. Your submission will be greatly appreciated by members of our communities who are affected by the coronavirus. We look forward to our future plans together for next year, to take our collaboration to an even wider audience and make a greater impact! ... CONNECT WITH US! WEBSITE: https://www.lilacovid19.org/ INSTA: https://www.instagram.com/lilacovid_19/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/LILACorg FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/LILACovid19/

Brendon Lau's Artist Statement: "In times of crisis, often I find that music is something that brings joy and comfort to me, being almost therapeutic. In the excerpt of the second movement of the Koussevitzky bass concerto that I played, it features a beautiful and melodic theme introduced in the beginning of the movement, only this time, even more heart-wrenching and impassioned as the movement finally dies away. In the scheme of the entire concerto, this movement is the calm between the storms of the first and third movements, both full of angsty and chaotic energy emulating what those on the front lines are going through right now. I hope this concerto can bring peace to all caught in the storms of our current situation." Brendon Lau Williston Park, NY Herricks High School, New Hyde Park, NY Grade 10 ... LILAC (Long Island Laboring Against COVID-19) is an award-winning student-run charitable organization whose mission is to serve the communities and workers who have been affected by the coronavirus by providing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and emotional support through inspirational letters, cards, artwork, and multimedia videos. Our GoFundMe page raises money for medical supplies for healthcare workers to show our solidarity as they keep our communities healthy. Our ThankYou & WeCare (TYWC) Initiative raises the medical community’s and patients’ spirits by compiling and distributing encouraging letters, cards, artwork, and creative videos in a dedicated space where all can come to enjoy uplifting works which show solidarity, support and appreciation. Through our TYWC Initiative, student artists are channeling their feelings about the COVID-19 pandemic into their creative work, and in response, are spreading positivity and seeking to build support and a sense of solace for all our front line heroes, both medical and non-medical, and those patients who are fighting the disease themselves. ... CONNECT WITH US! WEBSITE: https://www.lilacovid19.org/ INSTA: https://www.instagram.com/lilacovid_19/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/LILACorg FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/LILACovid19/

Abigail Wu's Artist Statement: "I’m Abigail Wu, a freshman at Syosset High School, and I’m honored to help out LILAC in any way I can. I chose to play Liebestraum or “Love Dream” by Liszt for a few reasons. Even though this piece is not the hardest and I didn’t necessarily play it extraordinarily well, I think that its mellow timbre offers us a pause to the chaos of this world, especially now. In addition, this piece is based off of a poem written by German writer Ferdinand Freliligrath titled “O Lieb, so lang du lieben kannst” or “Love as long as love you can”. This poem is both the writer reminiscing about times past, and has a slight tone of desperation. The writer warns about a time when a reader’s loved one will no longer be by their side, and pleads for them to “love as long as you (they) may”. Subsequently, Liebestraum also explores the writer’s yearning for readers to understand this sobering message. I think that especially now, this is a reminder for us to cherish the time we have with loved ones. We have to reignite the urgency in us to make every second count. After all, all of us are only given one life- and no practice runs." ... LILAC (Long Island Laboring Against COVID-19) is an award-winning student-run charitable organization whose mission is to serve the communities and workers who have been affected by the coronavirus by providing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and emotional support through inspirational letters, cards, artwork, and multimedia videos. Our GoFundMe page raises money for medical supplies for healthcare workers to show our solidarity as they keep our communities healthy. Our ThankYou & WeCare (TYWC) Initiative raises the medical community’s and patients’ spirits by compiling and distributing encouraging letters, cards, artwork, and creative videos in a dedicated space where all can come to enjoy uplifting works which show solidarity, support and appreciation. Through our TYWC Initiative, student artists are channeling their feelings about the COVID-19 pandemic into their creative work, and in response, are spreading positivity and seeking to build support and a sense of solace for all our front line heroes, both medical and non-medical, and those patients who are fighting the disease themselves. ... CONNECT WITH US! WEBSITE: https://www.lilacovid19.org/ INSTA: https://www.instagram.com/lilacovid_19/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/LILACorg FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/LILACovid19/

Amy Yu's Artist Statement: "Guzheng is a traditional Chinese instrument with a history of more than one thousand years. China had an outbreak of coronavirus, and now it has gradually recovered, and I hope all the countries in the world will gradually recover. This music is The Eagle Catching the Swan. This is an ancient song of the yuan dynasty, with a history of one thousand years. I played this piece of music about a small bird fighting against other animals, and I hoped that everyone would be able to fight off the coronavirus and recover like this bird." Amy Yu Woodbury, NY Syosset High School, Syosset, NY Grade 9 ... LILAC (Long Island Laboring Against COVID-19) is an award-winning student-run charitable organization whose mission is to serve the communities and workers who have been affected by the coronavirus by providing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and emotional support through inspirational letters, cards, artwork, and multimedia videos. Our GoFundMe page raises money for medical supplies for healthcare workers to show our solidarity as they keep our communities healthy. Our ThankYou & WeCare (TYWC) Initiative raises the medical community’s and patients’ spirits by compiling and distributing encouraging letters, cards, artwork, and creative videos in a dedicated space where all can come to enjoy uplifting works which show solidarity, support and appreciation. Through our TYWC Initiative, student artists are channeling their feelings about the COVID-19 pandemic into their creative work, and in response, are spreading positivity and seeking to build support and a sense of solace for all our front line heroes, both medical and non-medical, and those patients who are fighting the disease themselves. ... CONNECT WITH US! WEBSITE: https://www.lilacovid19.org/ INSTA: https://www.instagram.com/lilacovid_19/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/LILACorg FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/LILACovid19/

Elena Avni's Artist Statement: "Hi everyone. My name is Elena Avni and I am a self-taught dancer. This is a dance cover of Boy Meets Evil by J-Hope from the KPOP group BTS. This song is about giving into evil and trying to fight it but I chose this song because we all need to get together to fight this virus which is the evil. We won’t let the evil win and with everyone’s help we can provide for those in need of supplies and the frontline workers that are protecting us. Please donate to Lilac and help us fight this coronavirus to make our world safe again." Elena Avni Syosset, NY Syosset High School, Syosset, NY Grade 9 ... LILAC (Long Island Laboring Against COVID-19) is an award-winning student-run charitable organization whose mission is to serve the communities and workers who have been affected by the coronavirus by providing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and emotional support through inspirational letters, cards, artwork, and multimedia videos. Our GoFundMe page raises money for medical supplies for healthcare workers to show our solidarity as they keep our communities healthy. Our ThankYou & WeCare (TYWC) Initiative raises the medical community’s and patients’ spirits by compiling and distributing encouraging letters, cards, artwork, and creative videos in a dedicated space where all can come to enjoy uplifting works which show solidarity, support and appreciation. Through our TYWC Initiative, student artists are channeling their feelings about the COVID-19 pandemic into their creative work, and in response, are spreading positivity and seeking to build support and a sense of solace for all our front line heroes, both medical and non-medical, and those patients who are fighting the disease themselves. ... CONNECT WITH US! WEBSITE: https://www.lilacovid19.org/ INSTA: https://www.instagram.com/lilacovid_19/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/LILACorg FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/LILACovid19/

Leo Cheng's Artist Statement: "Hello, I am Leo Cheng, a rising 10th grader attending Syosset High School. It was a fun and spectacular experience playing the song “Perfect” by Ed Sheeran. This song is a piece of creative work that gives others ideas, inspiration, and a feeling of happiness and joy, amidst all the sufferings and sorrow many people are going through today. ⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ When my family and I played “Perfect” together, we know this song will remind ourselves to love unconditionally, to be grateful to the people around us, and to stay optimistic and strong in this horrible pandemic. My sister, Annabelle Cheng who attends the same highschool as me and my dad, Andrew Cheng who works as a computer programmer also worked really hard on this with me. Thank you and we hope this heart-warming music will brighten up your day and send a warm and hopeful message for everyone.”⁠ Leo Cheng Syosset, NY Syosset High School, Syosset, NY Grade 9 ... LILAC (Long Island Laboring Against COVID-19) is an award-winning student-run charitable organization whose mission is to serve the communities and workers who have been affected by the coronavirus by providing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and emotional support through inspirational letters, cards, artwork, and multimedia videos. Our GoFundMe page raises money for medical supplies for healthcare workers to show our solidarity as they keep our communities healthy. Our ThankYou & WeCare (TYWC) Initiative raises the medical community’s and patients’ spirits by compiling and distributing encouraging letters, cards, artwork, and creative videos in a dedicated space where all can come to enjoy uplifting works which show solidarity, support and appreciation. Through our TYWC Initiative, student artists are channeling their feelings about the COVID-19 pandemic into their creative work, and in response, are spreading positivity and seeking to build support and a sense of solace for all our front line heroes, both medical and non-medical, and those patients who are fighting the disease themselves. ... CONNECT WITH US! WEBSITE: https://www.lilacovid19.org/ INSTA: https://www.instagram.com/lilacovid_19/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/LILACorg FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/LILACovid19/

Elena Avni's Artist Statement: "Hi everyone. My name is Elena Avni and I am a self-taught dancer. This is an original dance choreography that I choreographed myself to the song Lovely by Billie Eilish ft. Khalid. This song is about battles with mental illness and fighting it. This quarantine has made everyone feel unsettled and sad because we cannot see anyone or do any of our normal things. This dance is dedicated to the frontline workers, medical staff, and fundraisers who are doing all they can to help out and fight this virus. This dance is also dedicated to those who are practicing social distancing, wearing masks to protect others, and staying at home. Please help us out and donate to Lilac! Even a small donation helps and please stay safe!!" Elena Avni Syosset, NY Syosset High School, Syosset, NY Grade 9 ... LILAC (Long Island Laboring Against COVID-19) is an award-winning student-run charitable organization whose mission is to serve the communities and workers who have been affected by the coronavirus by providing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and emotional support through inspirational letters, cards, artwork, and multimedia videos. Our GoFundMe page raises money for medical supplies for healthcare workers to show our solidarity as they keep our communities healthy. Our ThankYou & WeCare (TYWC) Initiative raises the medical community’s and patients’ spirits by compiling and distributing encouraging letters, cards, artwork, and creative videos in a dedicated space where all can come to enjoy uplifting works which show solidarity, support and appreciation. Through our TYWC Initiative, student artists are channeling their feelings about the COVID-19 pandemic into their creative work, and in response, are spreading positivity and seeking to build support and a sense of solace for all our front line heroes, both medical and non-medical, and those patients who are fighting the disease themselves. ... CONNECT WITH US! WEBSITE: https://www.lilacovid19.org/ INSTA: https://www.instagram.com/lilacovid_19/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/LILACorg FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/LILACovid19/