Author: GYCO

In 2025, GYCO continued to grow as a student-led organization dedicated to sharing hope through music across diverse communities.

What began as simple performances has evolved into a structured outreach model where music serves as a tool for emotional support, connection, and participation. Rather than performing only for audiences, GYCO focuses on engaging with individuals — especially patients, seniors, and individuals with disabilities — creating meaningful moments of encouragement and human connection.

GYCO operates on the philosophy:
Learn → Serve → Grow → Give Back

Throughout 2025, this philosophy was actively demonstrated as students moved beyond being performers to becoming contributors. Participants were not only recipients of music, but were also invited to engage, respond, and become part of the experience — transforming from receivers into givers.

Core Programs

Taps of Love
A rhythm-based, participatory program designed to engage patients and community members through simple percussion and shared musical interaction.

Beat & Breeze
A structured program for children and families, combining rhythm (Beat) and melody (Breeze) to create accessible and engaging musical experiences.

Winds of Love
A community-based program that began through collaborative performances with senior centers in 2025 and is expanding into formal partnerships in 2026. This program emphasizes shared music-making and encouragement, where participants actively engage rather than passively listen.

2025 Impact

• 15–20 outreach events across Georgia
• 60+ total outreach performances since founding
• Programs serving hospitals, senior centers, and disability organizations
• Ongoing partnership with Wheat Mission in Atlanta (Milal)
• Expansion of patient-centered and participatory music programs

Key Outreach Activities

February 17
March 15
May 17
June 12, 20, 28
July 11, 24
September 14, 20
November 15
December 20

Additional outreach included regular visits to disability organizations, hospital-based programs, and senior center performances.

Research & Evaluation

In 2025, GYCO initiated a student-led research effort to better understand the emotional and cognitive impact of live music outreach. Through surveys and observations involving senior participants, the research explored how music influences mood, memory, and engagement.

Early findings suggest that participatory music experiences — where individuals actively engage rather than passively listen — create stronger emotional connection, increased responsiveness, and a greater sense of belonging. These findings continue to inform the development and expansion of GYCO programs.

Education & Student Leadership

In addition to music outreach, GYCO students expanded their impact through educational initiatives. Student leaders Aaron and Kate developed and published a bilingual (English–Korean) math learning book under the GYCO name, designed to support students from diverse and underserved backgrounds.

이중언어 수학책 만들어 한글학교에 기부한 남매 화제 – Newswave25 | 뉴스웨이브25 신문사

This initiative reflects GYCO’s broader mission to support not only emotional well-being through music but also learning and growth through education.

Through these combined efforts, GYCO continues to build a community where everyone begins as a receiver, but grows into a giver.

Photos and program highlights are available on our website and Instagram (@gyco_opus).

Music as a Gift.
Service as a Relationship.

Greater Youth Collaborative Opus (GYCO) is a community-based nonprofit organization where students visit local institutions to share music, presence, and human connection. Our work centers on showing up, listening, and building relationships—offering music as a gift rather than a performance.

Who We Are

GYCO brings students into meaningful contact with the community through music-centered service. By visiting hospitals, senior living communities, and other care settings, students learn how creativity, empathy, and consistency can create moments of comfort and connection.

Why “Giving Tree”

Giving Tree reflects the belief that music can be offered freely, generously, and with care. Each visit is approached as a gift—prepared thoughtfully and shared with respect.

Our Purpose

GYCO believes that service is not a one-time act, but a relationship built over time. Each visit is an opportunity to listen, to be present, and to share something prepared with care. Music becomes a way to stay, connect, and return.

More Than Playing Music

During each visit, students do more than perform. They greet residents and patients, engage in conversation, listen to stories, and return to familiar spaces. These moments transform music into shared experience rather than background sound.

Community Connection

GYCO values consistency. By returning to the same communities, students build trust and familiarity. Over time, names are remembered, smiles are shared, and music becomes part of an ongoing relationship.

Senior Centers

City of Hope Atlanta

Veterans

Homeless Community

Milal (for people with disabilities)

Refugees

Performance date:  March 15, 2025

GYCO performed at Woodruff Park in downtown Atlanta. We were one of the volunteer groups that provided food and essential supplies to the homeless. Performing in downtown Atlanta has always been memorable because it meant an outdoor performance. 

This time, however, being outdoors posed unique challenges.  As we gathered in the park, we quickly realized that the weather would be a main obstacle for us to overcome.  At 8:30 in the morning, the weather was heavily overcast and extremely windy!  Nevertheless, all of us persevered in these suboptimal conditions and carried on with our performance.  

For this particular performance, GYCO members also prepared snacks and hygiene supplies to give away to the homeless. Thank you all GYCO volunteers for contributing not only your musical talents, but also essential supplies (deodorants, lip balms and granola bars) for our most vulnerable members of society!  GYCO was able to distribute 100 care packages to them.  

Performance date:  February 17, 2025

Today, GYCO performed at City of Hope Atlanta (formerly known as Cancer Treatment Center of America).  This is one of our dearest places to visit, as our music is heard and appreciated by cancer patients, their families, and healthcare providers. 

During our performance, we had a surprise visit from Mr. Jonathan Watkins, President and CEO of City of Hope Atlanta! It was Mr. Watkins’ first time observing a GYCO performance in person. After the performance, he delivered a heartfelt message of his gratitude for our volunteerism.  Mr. Watkins’ welcoming message was such a great treat for our members and their families, especially after driving about 2 hours to visit the hospital in the morning! 

Dear City of Hope!  GYCO will visit you again with more inspiring music soon.  

Event date:  January 26, 2024

The year 2024 was an amazing year for GYCO in terms of volunteer participation turnout!  Throughout the year, our young volunteers worked tirelessly, contributing their musical talents to GYCO’s great cause: offering hope, friendship, and encouragement through music to the underprivileged members of our community. 

To recognize their hard work and dedication, GYCO presented volunteer awards to its qualifying members based on their accumulated volunteer hours. The top 3 honors went to the following individuals:  Jueon Kim and Yeoeun Kim for first place, Seojin Lee for second place and Caden Thov for third place. Congratulations! Your strong volunteerism is a great source of inspiration for others. 

Our volunteers could not have accomplished their work without the support of their families.  Parents drove countless miles for the volunteers; carried instruments and equipment; organized setups and cleanups. GYCO would like to extend its deepest gratitude to all the volunteers and their families. Thank you!  

What a year it has been! Our members worked countless hours to organize, practice and participate in various volunteer projects throughout the year, with our foremost efforts directed to delivering healing, inspirational music to vulnerable members in our local communities.

Behind every performance, there has been incredible level of dedication and commitment from each and every GYCO member. This year, GYCO welcomed many new members, and although we were so thrilled to add new members, it meant that we had to constantly adjust our music, which demanded even more practice time from everyone. It is amazing how our members persevered through the challenges and tackled each performance professionally.

Among the many performances GYCO had done, there are a few that are truly unforgettable. One of them was the performance at Kkottdongae assisted living facility. In October, we visited and met with two residents who were over 100 years old! Despite their age, their mind was sharp and witty, and our performance turned into a celebration of life!

Another memorable performance was at Wheat Mission in Atlanta, whose main work is to provide essential support to people with developmental disabilities. GYCO joined their annual fundraising event, providing our performances. GYCO members and families also made cash donations. We were very glad to be part of such a noble cause.

In 2024, GYCO selected two volunteer projects, specifically targeting refugees and veterans. We partnered with another nonprofit organization called Friends of Refugees, who serves the refugee community in GA. This project was particularly meaningful to us because one of our GYCO members is a child whose father came to the U.S. as a refugee during their childhood. It was a great way to honor those who risked everything for a better life. We collected block books for refugee toddlers to support their literacy. We also delivered handwritten cards to them.

In celebration of Veterans Day, GYCO also honored veterans in our community by preparing and delivering hand written messages and small gifts.

2024 was a very busy and challenging time for GYCO, but we are so grateful that we received heartfelt welcomes everywhere we visited, and could touch so many people’s lives through our performances. We are so proud of our dedicated members for all their hard work and look forward to another great year in 2025!

performance date: December 21, 2024

With these beautiful, warm, sunny days, it is hard to imagine that Christmas is around the corner. To wrap up 2024, GYCO visited Heartis Village in Suwanee and Eben Silver Town in Duluth, GA and performed for the senior residents. We had special guests who made our events even more special. Thank you, our young friends! You were the highlight of our performances.

Also, thanks, Jueon Kim, 2024 GYCO President, Ian Choi and Joshua Yi for delivering special year-end messages to our audiences. Your messages were both insightful and hopeful!