I was a member of the Sacramento Youth Symphony's Premier Orchestra for four years. Over the course of my tenure with the Orchestra, my life was enriched in so many ways that enumerating them all would be impossible. I cultivated my musical ability by performing a professional repertoire with magnificent young musicians; I broadened my cultural outlook by touring in Austria and the Czech Republic; I helped my community by providing live orchestral music—an engaging cultural medium which can, and should, be preserved—to the public; and I built friendships with incredible people along the way. Michael Neumann, the Artistic Director of SYS and the conductor of the Premier Orchestra, has poured his soul into this organization, and it shows: his musical artistry, and his parallel love of humankind, filled every rehearsal and every performance. SYS is doing incredible work, enriching the lives of young people in the Sacramento region and beyond, and I hope they continue to do so far into the future.—Maxwell J. Collard