Kay, a beloved band teacher at Squalicum High School, was nominated by one of her long-time students, Logan. He told us how she creates a classroom where he and his fellow classmates feel supported, challenged, and at home – a place where they can find their confidence and their place in the music.

This year, we’re helping make sure they have the instruments they need to stay there.

Kay recently received a BPSF grant to help cover repairs and maintenance for instruments used by Squalicum’s Jazz, Concert, Marching, and Pep Bands. With students sharing instruments across multiple ensembles, the fleet gets a lot of use, and with it, a lot of wear.

“Most of my students don’t own their own instrument,” Kay explains. “We have a great need for repairs each year.”

By summer, much of the school’s repair budget has already been spent. That’s when Kay sends nearly the entire instrument fleet out for cleaning, maintenance, and repairs. The BPSF grant helped cover that hefty summer bill and get the instruments ready for a new school year.


"Our music program can’t function without working instruments,” Kay says. “It can be reallydiscouraging to put in so much time and effort and for an instrument that isn’t working properly to hold you back.”

A repaired instrument doesn’t just benefit one student. Kay’s instruments are shared by students across ensembles, kids discovering music for the first time, and even parents, grandparents, siblings, and alumni who return to perform alongside the band.

For Kay, that’s part of what makes the program special: the music keeps bringing people back.“Alums help at various events and I love for them to still – and always – have a place in the program that they graduated from,” she says.

It’s another example of the impact we saw when we honored Kay last year. Her influence reaches far beyond the classroom, and thanks to your support, so does the impact of this grant.

Read more about Kay's 2025 win here.