Hi, my name is Alan Klaus and I'm the trumpet professor at Memorial University of Newfoundland. I have had the pleasure of knowing Daryna, Oksana, Sergey, and Vitalii since they came to St. John's from Ukraine in February of last year. They are absolutely FANTASTIC musicians and truly wonderful people.

They had to leave behind thriving professional music careers including performing and teaching at the highest levels in Kharkiv. While Newfoundland has an incredible cultural and musical scene, it is quite difficult to make much money, especially while getting settled. A few of us have tried to connect them with local organizations and musicians but not much performing work has presented itself yet. This is a shame because they have so very much to offer.

In addition to their performance prowess, they are incredibly kind, positive, and are all working hard and contributing to the community in multiple other ways including music lessons, roofing, kitchen cabinetry, overnight personal care work, etc.

We starting brainstorming about this concert a few months ago and all they wanted was a chance to perform. The Anglican Cathedral of St. John the Baptist was amazingly generous and offered to host a concert in support of these wonderful people.

When I discussed the idea of making our concert free with optional donations to go directly to Daryna, Oksana, Sergey, and Vitalii, their first reaction was that they do not expect to be paid and they wanted to donate back to the people in Ukraine through humanitarian aid. I would love for the Newfoundland community to come together and show them appreciation for their talents by providing enough donations that they can contribute some to Ukraine while also keeping some to help build a more comfortable life for themselves here in Newfoundland.