Announcing the LEGAStrings Foundation!

December 14, 2021

Hi Zaner Family! Big Announcement here!!!

You all likely have been seeing that I have been attending a lot of high school & middle school orchestra concerts . Partly, this is work as I create the programs for these concerts. But, I attend these concerts as they bring me great joy and reminds me of Zane’s 8 years with the Maitland Middle and Winter Park High School orchestras. It gives me purpose to stay involved and honor the musical side of Zane’s legacy.

With that, I’d like to make an announcement right now. A foundation is being developed called LEGAStrings in Zane’s honor and the foundation’s goal will be to provide stringed instruments for the 2 orchestras Zane played in. I would like to give thanks to Lisa Hopko Loucks and Laurie Bitters for their unwavering love and devotion for their craft and students. Because of these ladies, Zane stayed off the streets and in front of a violin. And as time goes on, we’d like to expand LEGAStrings into a larger focus and see it grow.

At this time, I would like to thank Jill Wacker, Marla Mo and Kay Sterrett Leonard for being the brilliant masterminds behind this Foundation. I knew I wanted to do something with the orchestras to honor Zane, but I hadn’t put it together yet what that might be. These ladies came up with something and then presented it to me and together, we have molded it into LEGAStrings to benefit the musical arts in the schools he attended. Arts in our schools are in peril with funding cuts and it’s sometimes a challenge to keep these programs going strong, but I know from experience they are important to the development of the kids that want to participate and we would like to do our small part to see the arts in schools flourish.

I’d also like to thank Molly White of Cornell Strings and Daniel Muni of Muni Strings who we will work with to procure these instruments when the time comes. Also, thanks to those who have already donated or promised silent auction donations. We don’t have any events planned yet, but I’ll alert everyone when that will roll out next year!

I now have Zane's violin hanging on our living room wall and I may even try to learn to play it! Here's a pic of my little Zane is his early long-hair orchestra days!