My Nonprofit Reviews

I attended the Oklahoma Summer Arts Institute for high school artists for the first time in 2011 as a student in their symphony orchestra. I remember very vividly the first day with our guest conductor, Maestro Jeffrey Grogan, as we sat down and opened our two-week experience with the finale to Ottorino Respighi's "Pines of Rome." I had never felt so much power and emotion swell into me as I did playing in that exact moment and I felt like all of my preconceived notions about the world and the people in it had vanished. As the week went on, I watched Oklahoma's most talented youth pour their hearts out through their craft, both thriving in their environment and struggling to be better not for themselves, but for the people around them. We all met people younger, older, male, female, gay, straight, lesbian, black, white, or whatever it is that they identified as and none of it mattered. OSAI brought us together and, without trying to, taught us to care for each other and collaborate through our individual crafts. I can't think of another place where so many people who were all so young could have felt that unified. This organization is more than just guest speakers, workshops, and a fun two weeks away. The Oklahoma Arts Institute is creating beauty in the world, changing lives, and truly bringing out the best in every individual that has ever had the opportunity to attend their programs.