To Avielle, on Her Fifth, Sixth Birthday

From the large choral work, "The Unarmed Child." There's really no way to appropriately recognize your lost child's birthday, Jeremy said as he and Jennifer talked about what life has been like for their family since the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School took the lives of twenty children and six educators in 2012. Following the February 2018 mass shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School, I resolved to be part of the solution myself, in whatever way that would mean. It was not possible to continue to live with a feeling of helplessness. The composition "The Unarmed Child" is born out of that frustration and ensuing resolve. My engagement was further inspired by the action which one couple has taken in establishing the Avielle Foundation, a memorial to the daughter whom Jeremy and Jennifer lost at Sandy Hook Elementary. Jeremy and Jennifer gave me their permission to honor Avielle and their family by dedicating this movement from my larger work "The Unarmed Child." 

 

"You have to imagine it. When you allow yourself to imagine such tragedies, you'll be motivated to take action." - Jeremy Richman"