Emily Morrison
The Front Porch
“I feel like I’m kind of used to COVID uncertainty in a way… it’s kind of become part of just the way things are. I don’t feel that sense of terror that I felt at one point where we just did not know what was going on. But it’s still tricky.”
“Pre-COVID, mid-COVID, post-COVID… the thing is making sure that those important connections stay alive in our community. And we’re learned that it can look really different and still be very powerful and meaningful. For example, we have some teachers who decided to move all their lessons online and they have stayed online… What’s happening for us is that, we’re just following the meaningful connections where they are and helping to steward them.
“COVID happened and everything came to a halt. So all of our lessons and classes became virtual. Most of our students stayed with us, and many more joined us. We also kept our music venue alive, although the concerts became live streamed. For most people who played during the year of COVID, Save the Music was their only paying gig. We used that opportunity to raise money for other nonprofits – close to $30,000. And it was really a special time. It was hard, not having people together in the room, certainly. But our organization thrived, even despite the separation.”
“I feel like at the beginning of the pandemic, I really was terrified that our business might just fail and go away. But we are thriving, we are stronger than ever, we’ve been so impactful. And it is really due to the strength and quality of the musicians who are teaching artists at The Front Porh. And also just the unbelievable depth of talent that exists in this community that we’ve been able to draw from. It’s a very deep well of creativity and talent and generosity.”