Nick Penniman '18

Nick Penniman (’18), a sophomore at Georgetown Day School, seeks to take his love of music and use it to help others learn to love music and make connections with others. As an integral part of his education at Lowell, Nick says, “music builds bridges,” quoting Stevie Wonder, its “a world within itself, with a language we all understand.” During this holiday season, he hopes to extend the joy, connection, and excitement of music.

This January, Nick is launching Tuesday Night Music—a new addition to GDS' Tuesday Night community service line-up. From an early age, Nick loved music, and he learned that “that good music—like science or art or writing—can change the world, can create that feeling of excitement in the room that brings people together.” He remembers working with Lowell Middle School Music and Theatre teacher Mike Woods on one of the first real songs he performed “Wagon Wheel.” “I'll never forget that excitement in the music room,” Nick says.

The program, Tuesday Night Music, will provide instruments for elementary students, free weekly music lessons offered by different GDS student music tutors in exchange for service hours, and free musical experiences around DC. Musical excursions into DC will be funded by the Office of Community Engagement and Experiential Learning at GDS and through fundraising support. All instruments will be provided, in part, for free to students.

If you want to help, Nick is placing a bin in the Parkside lobby to collect lightly-used instruments next week, Dec. 16-20. He is accepting guitars, keyboards, drum sticks, ukuleles, saxophones, or other horns—with no major damages. Small fixes or improvements will be made before the instruments are given to their recipients. Please attach a note to your donation with your name on it or write your name and donation on the sheet above the bin.